Ryann Joseph, SEAS ’25, Columbus, OH
I was able to spend my third summer in Philadelphia this year researching in the Mitchell lab thanks to the funding I was awarded by Career Services. The Mitchell lab focuses on the lipid nanoparticle (LNP) mediated delivery of nucleic acids, including technology like the Moderna and Pfizer COVID vaccines. I have been a member of this lab since January 2022, and this summer was like no other since our lab was able to move to a new lab space from the engineering quad to One UCity on 38th and Market! It has been a long process and has made me extremely grateful for the opportunities this funding and this lab has provided me.
This summer, I was able to continue my independent research projects in the lab, which mainly focus on the applications of lipid nanoparticles for gene editing with cystic fibrosis applications. Cystic fibrosis is an autosomal recessive genetic disorder that results in non-functional CFTR proteins, which are responsible for the transport of chloride ions in and out of cells. The organ that is affected the most are the lungs, where the lack of this transport results in the development of thick mucus, preventing sufficient breathing and ultimately lower quality of life and high mortality. LNPs have arisen as a promising gene editing platform, and specifically for cystic fibrosis since we are able to direct delivery to the lungs when administered via the bloodstream, ultimately bypassing the thick mucus buildup that is seen in CF patients.
Our lab was able to receive a pilot grant from the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation to investigate and evaluate a large library of LNPs for gene editing that could be used to treat cystic fibrosis. This summer, I performed many experiments evaluating the use of Cas9, either as mRNA or as a protein, to perform CRISPR-Cas9 mediated gene editing in epithelial cell lines with CF-causing mutations. I am continuing to work on synthesizing novel lipids to screen in new LNPs to perform high-throughput analysis of how efficient the LNPs are in accumulating in the lungs.
My final undergraduate summer has been filled with exciting research and work on novel uses of the LNP technology that I have had the privilege of investigating these past years, and I cannot wait to see where it goes!
This is part of a series of posts by recipients of the 2024 Career Services Summer Funding Grant. We’ve asked funding recipients to reflect on their summer experiences and talk about the industries in which they spent their summer. You can read the entire series here
