JP earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Cellular and Molecular Biology, with a Minor in Public Health, from Occidental College in Los Angeles, CA in 2021. There he studied the potential medical relevance of cone snail venom using molecular biology and biochemistry assays. His work also involved computational biology of sequencing data. JP has been involved in scientific outreach activities and has been an advocate for promoting diversity, equity and inclusion in the sciences. We appreciate his leadership in this area and can’t wait to see what he does in the future. Welcome to the Dowen Lab!

Riya wrote a blog post entitled “The Most Beautiful Experiment in Biology” for the NC DNA Day blog. Great job communicating science history and concepts to students and other non-scientists! It is so important for our community.

Our lab is excited to welcome two new graduate students for the fall rotation period.

Benjamin Kornegay will investigate chromatin structure using advanced molecular biology and genome editing techniques. Benjamin graduated from the University of Richmond and has company experience.

Geoffrey Fox will work on new CRISPR methodologies in the lab. Geoffrey earned his B.S. in Cell & Molecular Biology from Penn State where he worked on structural biology and plant biology.

Welcome to the Dowen Lab and UNC!

Jill Dowen, Assistant Professor in Biochemistry and Biophysics and Biology was recently named the Well-being Liaison for the department. This is an important new position initiated and supported by the UNC School of Medicine. In this role, Dr. Dowen will “work with Departments and School of Medicine leaders to support a learning, training, and working environment in which members of the community thrive”.

The liaison will work closely with the School of Medicine Well-being Committee Chair, the Integrated Well-being Program’s Operational Team, the Faculty Affairs and Diversity Leadership Committee, the Office of Faculty Affairs and Leadership Development, and the Department’s Diversity Liaison Dr. Silvia Ramos and the Diversity Council.

Stay tuned for information on wellness-related programming and resources available to students, staff and faculty and an assessment of our community needs.

Riya applied for the highly competitive National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship Program. She came very close to earning an award, and was granted an honorable mention. She had an outstanding application and research project plan. Congratulations on coming close for this prestigious award.

UNC announcement of GRFP awards

Congratulations to our newest PhD… Dr. Megan Justice! Megan successfully defended her thesis work on Monday, April 5th in a public seminar held on Zoom. She explained her work identifying WIZ as a structural regulator of the genome. Her studies reveal that WIZ forms a complex with CTCF and cohesin, and that WIZ is required for proper genome organization and gene expression. Megan is the first graduate student to complete her PhD training in the lab. Way to set the bar high!

We are so proud of you and can’t wait to see what you do next!

Riya Gohil has decided to join the Jill Dowen Lab for her thesis work. Welcome Riya! Riya did her undergraduate work at University of Georgia, earning a BS in Genetics in December 2019. She is interested in understanding features of chromatin that impact cohesin- and CTCF-mediated genome structures. We are glad that you chose to join us and excited to see what you discover during your time in the lab.

Alex was recognized for her work founding BlackInGenetics in National Magazine.  She emphasizes how important it is for geneticists to be careful and intentional with their language and interpretations around studies of ethnicity and race.  Alex has lead efforts that promote diversity in science, including providing resources, networking opportunities and programming.  We are so inspired by your work to make science accessible for all.

Alex successfully competed to be one of the UNC nominees put forward in prestigious national fellowship competition.  Alex is now in the running for the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Gilliam Fellowships for Advanced Study.  She is a terrific candidate with a strong background in research and leadership.  We hope HHMI is able to recognize Alex’s accomplishments and provide her future opportunities for continued development by awarding her with his fellowship.

Two Dowen Lab members have won competitive awards at the 4th Annual UNC Chromatin and Epigenetics Symposium, held virtually on Dec 3, 2020.

Graduate student Nicole Arruda won an award for her talk.

Graduate student Megan Justice won an award for her poster presentation.

Congratulations on being recognized for your presentation skills and your results. Enjoy the prize money!