sophia staerz

As an undergraduate at Illinois Wesleyan University, I was privileged to work under Dr. David Bollivar. I conducted explorative research over Homing Endonucleases and Magnesium-Protoporphyrin IX Monomethyl Ester Oxidative Cyclase. During this time, I was able to gain cloning and microbiology skills and experience. Through the mentorship of Dr. Bollivar, I was invited to spend a summer in Braunschweig, Germany to further my research of Magnesium-Protoporphyrin IX Monomethyl Ester Oxidative Cyclase, under the advisement of Dr. Dieter Jahn. I graduated from Illinois Wesleyan University in 2018 and promptly began my organic chemistry PhD at Michigan State University.  I was able to join the Tepe group in November of 2018. The group centers around the development of novel small molecule therapeutics to treat neurodegenerative diseases. They not only develop the small molecules, but most of biological testing is also conducted by the group. The goal of my thesis project is to develop novel and drug-like small molecules that activate the 20S proteasome in disease relevant conditions. My central hypothesis is that Chlorpromazine based 20S proteasome activators will increase the degradation of toxic protein aggregates and rescue cells from the consequences of these toxic aggregates. Dr. Tepe then pushed me to apply for the Integrative Pharmacological Sciences Training Program (IPSTP) Fellowship, which I was awarded in 2019. This program was the perfect addition to my work in the Tepe lab. Through IPSTP fellowship, I was given the opportunity to pursue a dual degree in Organic Chemistry and Pharmacology.