We at SFU SURJ are all about promoting undergraduate scientific research – that’s why we’re here! As this Spring semester ends and the start of USRA (Undergraduate Student Research Award) projects begin, we thought of no better way to appreciate the SFU undergrad scientific community than by featuring the brilliant ladies and gents doing research here at SFU this summer. For those of you hoping to do research yourselves one day, we especially hope these profiles inspire you to stake your own claim in the world of science!
For our first profile, we present:
Name: Vanessa Fussell
Faculty: Biology – Cells, Molecules, and Physiology Stream
Year of study: Third
Supervisor (PI): Harald Hutter
Q: What do you want to be when you grow up?
A:Veterinarian
Q: How did you get involved in research?
A: I was interested in both genetics and the nervous system. I approached my TA in my Developmental Biology Class who is a masters student in Harald Hutters Neural Development Genetics Lab.
Q: What have you been working on in your research so far?
A: Studying Axon Guidance Defects in nervous system developement seen in a strain of C.elegans with a mutation in the cadherin-4 gene and gene mapping fluorescent markers.
Q: What’s your favourite course that you have taken so far in your degree?
A: BISC405, Neurobiology with Gordon Rintoul
Q: What is a typical “day in the life” in the lab for you?
A: Analyzing samples under the fluorescent microscope (as seen in this picture), PCR, and running gels
SFU Science Undergraduate Research Journal 