Hello all!
My name is Victor Piazza. I am a previous Biotechnology major, with Chemistry and Biology minors. I recently completed my undergraduate career at UW-River Falls, marking my place as the first child in my family to obtain a Bachelor’s degree. I now look toward the future and hope to obtain my Ph.D in the field of biomedical sciences. My hope is that I may stand as an example for others like myself to follow and make the most out of their own educational experiences. I have taken the opportunity to participate in three distinct academic research projects and two industrial research projects throughout my undergraduate career. All have been significant to me, but I will only focus here on my academic research experience. The first I’ll describe was conducted under the mentorship of Dr. Scott Ballantyne in the Biology Department. Using cDNA from the frog, Xenopus laevis, we sought to purify and characterize a type of PolyA-binding protein found exclusively in frog embryos within the first 30 hours of life. This project involved of cDNA transduction into a competent strain of E. coli and subsequent promotion of recombinant protein production. The recombinant protein, embryonic PolyA-binding protein (ePAB), was purified via metal ion affinity chromatography. This project culminated in local, statewide, and national conferences including the National Conference on Undergraduate Research (NCUR) in 2008. Held in Salisbury, MD. I found it to be particularly valuable in allowing me to present myself professionally to audiences.
My second academic research project focused on the generation of cardiac artificial tissues (ATs) using natural scaffolds, under the mentorship of Dr. Tim Lyden in the Tissue and Cellular Innovation Center (TCIC) at UW-River Falls. I used embryonic chicken hearts along with natural and proprietary matrices to grow rat cardiac muscle tissues. The tissues, composed of commercially-available cells (ATTC #CRL1446) seeded onto the aforementioned matrices, appeared to expand throughout the matrix when cultured for set time intervals. One of the most exciting aspects of this work is the contrast between cellular adhesion behaviors on different matrices. This aspect has allowed Dr. Lyden and myself to gain much insight into characteristic behaviors of this cell line. An additional thrill was getting to conduct scanning electron microscopy on my samples and see the proliferative growth patterns.
This project has allowed me to learn more than I thought possible about tissue engineering techniques and practices in working with 3D cultures. It is very exciting for me to read literature from top researchers analyzing different aspects of cardiac tissue generation and envision what is happening from minute aspects of molecular and cellular signaling behavior within the cells up to tissue formation and the overall messages that are being given. More recently, I have began a new project under Dr. Lyden’s mentorship, in which primary chick heart tissues are being cultured on a proprietary matrix of his design for set time intervals and at distinct stages of chick development. We are currently conducting scanning electron microscopy and immunohistochemistry to determine the phenotypic and molecular characteristics of these cardiac ATs. It is our hope to obtain robust ATs with characteristic rhythmic beating patterns out to one-month culture periods. And, in case I forgot to mention, this is my third “undergraduate” academic research project.
As stated, it is my goal to earn a Ph.D in the field of biomedical sciences. I urge anyone reading this to seek out a professor and talk about your interest in conducting research. Even if you don’t think you want to go to grad school, or you don’t know if research would be your thing. TRY IT. It can’t hurt, and you may be surprised at how engaging/addicting it can be for you intellectually. I didn’t know what my research interests would be right away, and after a few projects I realized my passion lies in applied biomedical sciences. Additionally, if you have an idea for a research project but don’t think a professor will go along with it because that’s not where their interests lie, stop thinking like that. It does not hurt to ask. The first project I conducted with Dr. Lyden was one primarily of my own invention. It turned out to work very well because it interfaced my project ideas with his overall research goals. So take a chance. Those are just some things to keep in mind. I wish everyone the best of luck in their future endeavors and hope that you make the most out of your time in college. Thanks for reading!
Sincerely,
Victor G. Piazza, Senior McNair Scholar
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