So today was my first day of graduate school classes. Everything went really well. It will be quite a busy schedule, with three 90-minute lectures a week (Mon., Wed., Fri.), but as long as I read before hand I will be fine. Plus, all the classes are video recorded and posted on the course website, so I can review actual lectures in addition to my notes and reading. Good stuff.

Also, I've identified one additional rotation lab that I am interested in working in for my first lab rotation. The lab of Dr. Kurt Hankenson, D.V.M., Ph.D. works on bone, which I did extensively throughout my undergraduate time at Rutgers. Here is a summary of Dr. Hankenson's research taken from his faculty page:

The guiding mission of our research program is to better understand cellular and molecular mechanisms of bone remodeling and regeneration. With this knowledge we will be better equipped to develop treatments to restore bone mass in osteoporosis and enhance regeneration of bone defects and non-unions. This research focus has developed around two intersecting themes: (1) the regulation of bone cell function by extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins, and (2) the regulation of marrow-derived mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) quiescence, proliferation, fate determination, and differentiation.

MSCs are the precursors for osteoblasts, which are bone-forming cells. My undergraduate researched focused on the protein osteocalcin (OC), which is a protein synthesized and secreted by osteoblasts that plays a crucial role in bone mineralization. As you can see, my undergraduate research looked at fully mature osteoblasts rather than the progenitor MSCs, and as such the research focus differs from that of Dr. Hankenson; at Rutgers, our lab was looking at effects of OC deficiency (which assumes already functioning MSCs), however if MSC function is impaired, then osteoblast formation is also impaired, so OC concentration will likely decrease in the first place.

In any event, Dr. Hankenson was very excited to hear of my strong interest in his lab, and I have a meeting scheduled with him for later in the week. As an aside, I was informed of Dr. Hankenson's work by a graduate student named Grace at the CAMB Happy Hour this past Thursday evening. I have always maintained the perception from current students and faculty that continuing your undergraduate work is frowned upon, as it limits one's personal scientific expansion. And while I respect and understand that advice, I was refreshed and renewed to hear the Grace's rebuttal, being that if you are sure you are excited about the science, why not continue your undergraduate work? You will have unwavering passion for the work, and you could finish your thesis in a shorter amount of time.

Overall, I know the point of rotations is to expand one's research experiences, learn new experimentation techniques, and ultimately find out what tickles your scientific fancy. And now I'm reassured that it is OK if what gets me motivated and excited is the same science I had been working on for four years at Rutgers.

And lastly, I am still getting used to calling faculty by their first names! It's very odd for me, as I was raised that you always show respect by using a proper title (in most instances here, Doctor or Professor works fine) followed by their surname. As I refer to professors' names by their last name, I see the eye rolls of older students. So that is taking a while to get used to, but no matter how many scientists I develop first-name relationships with, I don't think I will ever refer to my undergraduate P.I. by anything else than the perfectly appropriate Dr. B!

Cheers,

Mike C.