The time I spent in the Explorers Program this year, though on the computer, was surprisingly enjoyable; surprisingly not because I didn't expect it to be, but rather because I had just endured several online science programs plus eyes-glued-to-the-screen school over the last year and a half. So here's what I expected: some silent break out rooms, a few difficulties with interaction, and maybe some tough lectures with a little room for questions sprinkled in. But what I got (along with everyone else I hope) was a really fun program- yes, "really fun"- that had amazing lessons, guest speakers, and people in general. That being said, it wasn't easy to choose what I enjoyed the most from my experience; and with some deliberation I hesitantly decided to write about our lesson on the Immune System. I selected it because it was the lesson which inspired me the most with regards to learning science and of course, it was a blast. Pun intended... Sorry.
The Immune System, prior to the lesson on it, proved to be worrisome in my mind. Being as complex as it is, I wasn't sure if I'd be able to grasp the presentation that would be given to us by Alicia Morales. Thankfully, I did. Alicia began with a great explanation of how the immune system works- at a basic level of course- and progressed to protein production, T-cell "handshakes" (receptors), cancer, and immunotherapy, all explained cohesively and in a simple way. The lesson set the stage for everything else to come and allowed me to comprehend those future lessons at a greater level. Here's one of my favorite slides- Immune System 101:
I chose to look at a Fred Hutch study which was not only fascinating to me- I'm very interested in mutations and cancer- but also extremely relevant to the Explorers program; the study, done by Dr. Andrew Hsieh and his lab focused on mutations which occur in "overlooked" regions of DNA. And their scientific goal, if you will, was to understand how these mutations affect the development of cancer. One particularly fascinating aspect of this research is those "overlooked" regions- which prior to hearing about this study I had never heard of; These non-coding regions, as they're referred to, contain the instructions for how a cell should produce proteins. Dr. Hsieh and his lab focused on 5-prime untranslated regions (5' UTRs), a type of non-coding region- which are responsible for each gene and "when and how strongly they are turned on, or transcribed." Hsieh and his lab, by analyzing prostate cancer patient samples- through genetic sequencing- discovered that many had recurring mutations in the 5' UTRs of genes associated with cancerous cell growth. Dr. Yiting Lim- also part of the Hsieh lab- noticed that "5’ UTR mutations often arose in genes involved in the cell’s cycle of growth and division, including a group of known cancer-promoting genes (MAP kinase pathway)..." So how's the study relevant? Dr. Hsieh and his group ultimately discovered that patients with these mutations- affecting the MAP kinase pathway- were more likely to have worse cancer (metastases, aggression, etc.) but also more benefit from chemotherapy. The research is still being furthered, but the hope is that it could open the doors to future cancer treatments and drugs; cancer being as difficult to cure as it is, these areas of research are essential.