The overarching goals of the parent R35 award is to elucidate mechanisms of spliceosome assembly and regulation in biochemical depth using a variety of techniques. This administrative supplement will support undergraduate research, scientific development, and career development and contribute to these goals. The candidate (Lukas Voigts) will complete a full-time virtual learning and research experience during the Summer of 2020 in my laboratory. He will annotate human spliceosome cryo-EM structures with the locations of human disease-causing mutations. This will allow him to study the structure/function impact of these mutations. In addition, he will create Pymol session files and scripts to allow others to view his annotated structures. These files will be a valuable addition to the field for others studying pre-mRNA splicing and human disease. As part of this training, Lukas will gain new technical and operational skills in structural biology and writing computer scripts for Pymol. He will also be mentored in scientific research, communication, and career development with an aim towards meeting his own career goals of a position in the biotechnology or pharmaceutical industry upon graduation.
This administrative supplement will be used to fund a full-time, mentored research experience for Lukas Voigts in my laboratory. Lukas will use computer modeling to map disease-causing mutations to human spliceosome complexes.
