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Patrick Manning hopes to use his experience in the Rolfes lab in medical school. (Photo: Roland Dimaya)

By LiAnna Davis

Dr. Ronda Rolfes’ enthusiasm for genetics and her eagerness to help students convinced Georgetown senior Patrick Manning that he wanted to be part of her lab. Dr. Rolfes put him right to work on her research with the Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast, examining the interactions between two proteins, Bas1 and Pho2, during the regulation of purine nucleotide synthesis.

“We created mutations at specific points in the amino acid sequence in these proteins thought to be crucial to the function of the protein, and we are analyzing the differences using a yeast two-hybrid screen, which gives a readout on the level of interaction between two proteins,” says Manning. “The specific regions designated for mutation are identified by comparing similarities in the DNA sequence for the proteins across many different species, with the assumption that the regions that have the least amount of variability across species must be retained due to critical function. Creating mutations in these targeted regions allows us to better understand the mechanism of interaction between Bas1 and Pho2 and their regulation of transcription.”

This was his first experience doing lab work, but Manning enjoyed it. After two semesters of working in Dr. Rolfes’ lab, the Norwell, Massachusetts, native spent the summer working at Boston’s Dana Farber Cancer Institute in a research lab studying the mechanism underlying the development of breast cancer.

“I enjoyed having a chance to put some of the knowledge I have learned in science courses to use in areas outside of the course itself,” Manning says. “The courses themselves are interesting, and trying to solve problems in a real-life situation using that information is very rewarding.”

Manning, an avid soccer player and vice president of the Georgetown Men’s Club Soccer team, intends to use his research experience in medical school in the future. Although he has not decided exactly which area of medicine he wants to pursue, he is certain that his advanced lab work with Dr. Rolfes, particularly molecular biology research practices, will benefit him in medical school.

Manning is particularly grateful for the assistance provided by Dr. Rolfes and the other members of her lab in helping shape his research experience.

“Dr. Rolfes is always available for help. She is very happy to explain the research in detail and assist in the tasks,” Manning says. “Everyone I’ve met has been very helpful. Anup, a post-doc in the lab, has been especially informative and friendly in assisting me with the research. I’ve had a very good experience overall and learned a great deal.”

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