Heitman Lab Members

Sabrina Darwiche Undergraduate Student 320 CARL Building Box 3546 DUMC Durham, N.C. 27710 Phone: 919.684.3036 Fax: 919.684.5458 Email: sabrina.darwiche@duke.edu

I am currently an undergraduate in Trinity College at Duke University, class of 2013, and pursuing a major in Asian and Middle Eastern studies with a concentration in Arabic, as well as a certificate in Global Health. I began working in Dr. Heitman's lab in March 2011 under the supervision of Dr. Xuying Wang.

Our research interest focuses on the RNAi pathway of Cryptococcus. The RNAi pathway, which appears to have evolved as a powerful mechanism of defense used to protect the genome from internal and external dangers, has become a crucial tool in the laboratory. Its manipulation allows for the better understanding of recently generated sequence data, as well as the discovery of gene function. Some of the greatest advantages of the RNAi pathway are derived from its reversibility and its homology based operating system. Previous research done in the Heitman lab, has determined that in Cryptococcus neoformans, this pathway is utilized during the sexual cycle specifically to protect the genome throughout sexual development. A better understanding of the RNAi pathway for its use as an experimental tool is especially important in exploring the genome sequence of Cryptococcus given the difficulty it presents to typical manipulation.

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