Katherine A. Merisotis, B.S.

I am a graduate of Bates College with a major in Biology and minor in Mathematics. My previous research experience includes my thesis at Bates, which concentrated on the field of gene regulation through observing an endosymbiotic relationship of microalgae in the freshwater sponge, Ephydatia Muelleri. My primary focus was on identifying genes that indicated a statistically significant difference in gene expression after the introduction of the microalgae, acting as an infection. I used RNASeq analysis to identify genetic pathways regulated during endosymbiosis and qRT-PCR to independently validate RNA expression level observed in RNASeq.

As a research assistant in the Skarnes Lab, I am primarily responsible with the culture of CRISPR edited human iPSCs. Our research is focused on several different projects including the Initiative for Neurodegenerative Disease (iNDI) with the goal to produce precise edits using CRISPR to introduce disease-associated mutations and provide lines to further characterize these neurodegenerative diseases. We also produce edited iPSCs for the Molecular Phenotypes of Null Alleles in Cells (MorPhiC) initiative with the goal to knockout protein-coding genes. I am additionally tasked with performing genome-wide SNP microarray analysis as a part of our comprehensive quality control analysis of copy number variation and loss of heterozygosity in pre- and post-edited human iPSC lines. Through these projects, I am continuing to gain additional research skills in a variety of methods to better prepare for my eventual pursual of a M.D.