e-Life Publishes Research from Elmira College Graduate, Professor

Research journal e-Life published genetics research conducted by Elmira College graduate Emma Kelly '21 and her Biology professor, Dr. Amy Lyndaker. The paper, which was published February 8, 2022, included research from collaborators from the Department of Biomedical Sciences at Cornell University.

"It feels amazing to have my undergraduate research in a published journal," Kelly said. "I value how relevant this research is, the people I have met, and all the lessons I have learned."

For Kelly, one of the biggest takeaways from the research experience was the lesson of resilience – if something doesn't work the first time, you just need to keep trying.

"Eventually you will reach success," said Kelly, who remains grateful for the guidance and encouragement she received from Lyndaker along the way.

The paper includes Kelly's work from two semesters of independent research she did with Lyndaker as well as one summer in the Obler Summer Research program. It details the co-evolution of specific DNA repair proteins and other proteins essential to chromosome maintenance. This research paired well with the research their collaborators at Cornell completed related to chromosome analysis in mammals and could help progress research in the fields of cancer biology and fertility.

"As we learn more about how the 9-1-1 complexes work and which other proteins they interact with, we come closer to understanding why they are required for both normal cells and cancer cells to survive and also for mammals to reproduce," explained Lyndaker. "These fundamentals then lay the groundwork for possible development of targeted chemotherapies and fertility treatments in humans."

Kelly hoped this research would continue to expand and serve as "a stepping stone to amazing genetic discoveries."

The open-access article is available here: https://bit.ly/LyndakerKellyResearch