Choi, a biology and chemistry double major, researched how and why cells age at the medical laboratory thanks to a Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) this past summer. The researchers trusted him with advanced equipment, including a device that can slice tissue samples 20 millionths of a meter thin, and a giant $350,000 flow cytometer, which can run dozens of analyses simultaneously. Choi proved adept with the equipment and capable of keeping up with the rigorous study—so much so, they asked him to stay on longer than his REU was scheduled.
“It was really cool. Everyone in the lab is super helpful and welcoming,” Choi said. “You learn a lot of techniques and tips and tricks and… all the little nitty-gritties that you would never learn unless you actually did it for yourself.”
His prestigious REU was no accident. Choi’s path to the Mayo Clinic began in a first-year writing seminar with Hector Valenzuela, the Roy E. & Marie G. Campbell Distinguished Associate Professor of Biology. The introductory course not only exposes students to lab work early on, it stresses the importance of clear communication—because “in science, if you can’t communicate your ideas,” Valenzuela said, “you’re not a good scientist.”
After getting his feet wet, Choi asked Valenzuela if he could join the professor in his laboratory to dive deeper. Valenzuela, who’s always on the lookout for student researchers, led Choi to an intermediary step: a more advanced course on the pathology of aging, which exposed him not only to more detailed scientific literature, but to equipment that, at other institutions, is sometimes reserved only for graduate students.
“I taught him how to clone, how to use all this equipment like flow cytometry, which is great because that gives him background for the research that I’m doing,” Valenzuela said.
Upon receiving a Keck Undergraduate Summer Research Fellowship, Choi joined Valenzuela in his aging research. But in addition to spending the summer in the Science & Learning Center, helping the professor raise cell samples, an REU was on Choi’s mind, too. He applied to the Mayo Clinic, which would be a major step forward on his path to a Ph.D.
After his preparation at Whittier, when Choi went in to work in lab, “he was able to keep up the conversation and they were very impressed with him,” Valenzuela said.
Choi also credits his lab work with chemistry professor Christina Bauer for preparing him for the Mayo Clinic. Last year, he conducted research with two other students on synthesizing and manipulating novel metal organic frameworks (MOFs)—a type of molecular Lego, Bauer said. Chemists can use conditions to connect atoms in specific ways to tailor their properties.
“By understanding how the parameters affect the overall structure and geometry, we hope to make a breakthrough in the overall mechanistic picture of exactly how MOFs are formed,” Bauer said. “Brandon was able to grasp concepts immediately and hit the ground running. He was a huge asset to the project and pending final data, we are close to drafting our manuscript.”
Choi came to Whittier with the idea of becoming a veterinarian. But after getting a taste for research, his long-term goal changed.
In the meantime, Choi will continue working closely with Valenzuela, along with a growing number of student researchers. Why the sudden surge of student research? Besides a good crop of students, Valenzuela points to the recent completion of the Science & Learning Center renovation.
“There’s a lot more interest, there’s a lot more equipment, there’s a lot more resources,” Valenzuela said. He used to have to turn down students who wanted to join his aging research. Thankfully for students like Choi, the science program is aging well at Whittier.
