Ariana Jimenez
Hello, my name is Ariana Jimenez and I graduated from Oglethorpe University with a B.S. in Biology.
When beginning my undergraduate career in Biology, I knew that I wanted to help people and thought becoming a physician was the best way to accomplish this goal. I later learned that no matter what task you perform, in some way you are helping people. My academic advisor and later laboratory mentor Dr. Alford showed me that performing research helps answer bigger questions that can be applied to multiple different fields. My interest in research started in the Genetic Engineering course I took junior year where Dr. Alford incorporated her research into the lab portion of the course. From this experience I grew more curious of the possibilities of research and worked in her lab full time the following summer and throughout my senior year where I studied the structure and function of ciliary assembly through techniques such as immunoblotting and immunofluorescence microscopy. At the close of the summer, I decided I wanted to pursue my PhD in the biological sciences because I found joy in the challenges and support that come with lab work. My overarching research interest is to continue asking molecular and cellular questions and apply the findings wherever necessary. Although the lab life may seem like an endless cycle of the same steps day-to-day to onlookers, in the lab each day was different, and this notion is what motivated me to continue forward with pursuing a PhD with the long-term goal of establishing my own lab in an academia setting.
I joined the PREP@UGA program to gain additional research experience as well as broaden the scope of my research interests. I feel as though I just scratched the surface of my potential during my undergrad and hope that during my time here at UGA I will gain the skills and knowledge necessary to make me a competitive graduate school applicant and a well-rounded scientist.
I am currently working in the lab of Dr. Melinda Brindley under the mentorship of a 5th year graduate student Marissa Acciani. My primary project focuses on investigating the role of cellular flippases in Ebola virus entry through using techniques such as basic tissue cell culture, flow cytometry, and end-point dilution assays.