10th ANNUALANATOMY & CELL BIOLOGY

UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH &LAB RECRUITMENT DAY

Thursday, November 28, 2019

Benefits of Doing Research as an Undergraduate

• Good introduction to what graduate school and research is like

• A fun and rewarding way to earn credits (and sometimes income)

• Great opportunity to acquire an academic reference by working with an individual professor

• Professional Skills Development:o Problem-solving and time management skills

o Presentation and communication skills

o Teamwork and independent work skills

Undergraduate Research Opportunities

Work or Volunteer Experience:

• Volunteer part-time in a lab during the academic year

• Paid or volunteer work during the summer

• Work Study positions: mcgill.ca/studentaid/work-study

Undergraduate Research Fellowships:

• NSERC USRA: mcgill.ca/medresearch/biomedical/nserc

• Pan-McGill SURA: mcgill.ca/science/research/undergraduate-research/sura

• John Bergeron Summer Research Scholarship: macssmcgill.com/scholarships

Credit options:

• ANAT 432

• 396 Research Projects

ANAT 396 Undergraduate Research Project

• Course Coordinator: Dr. Craig Mandato

• 3 credits, one semester

• Approximately 10 hours per week, for 13 weeks

• Offered in Fall, Winter, Summer semesters (depending on supervisor availability)

• All 396 courses count as electives and ACB students can do a 396 in other departments (HGEN 396, PHGY 396, etc.)

• mcgill.ca/science/research/undergraduate-research/science-research-courses

ANAT 396 Undergraduate Research Project

How it works:• Contact potential supervisors affiliated with the Department who

are doing research you find interesting• ANAT 396 supervisor can be any faculty member listed at:

mcgill.ca/anatomy/directory• If they agree to supervise a project, you’ll develop a proposal with

them, fill out a 396 project form and submit it for approval (to Joelle in M/28)

Evaluation:• To be determined with your supervisor• Minimum 50% of grade for final report

ANAT 432 Honours Research Project

• Course Coordinator: Dr. Huy Bui• 9 credits • Summer semester: Full-time, 5 full days per week, minimum

of 16 weeks• Fall/Winter: Part-time, 2 full days per week, in both Fall &

Winter semesters• Required course for ACB Honours students• Prerequisite BIOL 301 (or prior research experience) • Open to ACB Major students with a minimum CGPA 3.2, when

space permits (counts for 3 credits of BOC + 6 credits of electives)

ANAT 432 Honours Research Project

How it works:• Find a supervisor who’s affiliated with the Department

• With supervisor, develop a suitable research project and determine expectations for the year/semester

• Gain a comprehensive understanding of the research question and research field

Evaluation:• 10% Midterm

o 5% oral presentation (chalk talk format)

o 5% abstract

• 35% Supervisor evaluation

• 30% Final report, written as a scientific paper

• 25% Oral presentation and defense

The life of a researcher…

Insights and experiences from students and faculty

Katya Peri

U3 BSc student

(Dr. Bui’s lab)

Sarah Gagnon

MSc student

(Dr. Rocheleau’s lab)

David Zhou

PhD 3 student

(Dr. Mandato’s lab)

Kimberley Gauthier

PhD 7 student

(Dr. Rocheleau’s lab)

What do you do with a B.Sc. in Biology?

Undergrad research recruitment day 2019Kimberley.Gauthier@mail.mcgill.ca

Next Generation Summer Research Internship at IRIC with Dr. Jean-Claude Labbé

Kimberley.Gauthier@mail.mcgill.ca

Kimberley.Gauthier@mail.mcgill.ca

Work/Study, NSERC summer internship, and Honour’s thesis with Dr. Art Forer

Kimberley.Gauthier@mail.mcgill.ca

Kimberley.Gauthier@mail.mcgill.ca

Dr. Jean-François Cloutier Professor

Department of Neurology & Neurosurgery (MNI) and

Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology

jf.cloutier@mcgill.ca

cloutierlab.mcgill.ca

Jean-François Cloutier, Montreal Neurological Institute

Becoming a Researcher: Hang on for a crazy ride!

20

Becoming a PI; Choice or Chance?

Ph.D. Post-Doc

My Lab

Highlights and lowlights

What’s it like being a researcher?

Highlights:

Lowlights:

Work with colleagues with very different backgrounds.

Work independently yet you are part of a bigger team.

Make friends for life.

Whether you get it right or wrong, you’re actually doing science!

Mentoring junior colleagues and trainees.

Get to have fun!

Learning to deal with grant application rejections.

Learning to deal with manuscript rejections.

Learning to deal with rejections from your experiments!

Advice on choosing an advisor

So you’re thinking about becoming a researcher…

Commonly asked questions:

2. How do I get a PI to be interested in my application to do research in their lab?

3. What are the most important criteria when choosing a lab for a research project?

1. Do I need a high GPA to become a good scientist?

Thank you!

Dr. Dieter P. ReinhardtProfessor

Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology and

Faculty of Dentistry

dieter.reinhardt@mcgill.ca

reinhardt-lab.mcgill.ca

Dieter P. Reinhardt, Ph.D.Faculty of Medicine

Department of Anatomy and Cell Biologyand

Faculty of DentistryDivision of Biomedical Sciences

dieter.reinhardt@mcgill.cax4243

Extracellular fiber systems in health and disease

Cells

Extracellularmatrixfibers

Structuralcomponents

Physiol. activecomponents

Microfibrils in tissues - elastic fibers

Elastin core

Microfibrils

Microfibrils in tissues – ciliary zonules

Ciliary zonules

Lens

Genetic disorders caused by mutations in Fibrillins

Fibrillin-1: Marfan syndrome stiff skin syndromedominant Weill-Marchesani syndrome acromicric dysplasiageleophysic dysplasiaprogeroid Marfan syndromefamilial aortic aneurysmMASS syndromefamilial ectopia lentis

Fibrillin-2: congenital contractural arachnodactyly (Beal’s syndrome)

Fibrillin-3: polycystic ovary syndrome?

55 mm

Marfan syndrome - clinical features

Skeletal SystemLong bone overgrowth

CardiovascularSystem

Aneurysm

OcularSystem

Ectopia lentis

Ciliary zonules

Dominant Weill-Marchesani syndrome

Source: Hum Genet (2002) 110 :366–370, J Fr. Ophtalmol., 2001; 24, 9, 944-948

Progeroid–lipodystrophy syndrome

• Pathological pathways and treatment of the disorders

• Role of extracellular fiber systems in growth factor regulation

• Formation and degradation

• Molecular functions and cell matrix dynamics

• Regulation by microRNAs

Research Interests in the Reinhardt Lab

Dr. Susanne Bechstedt

Assistant Professor

Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology

susanne.bechstedt@mcgill.ca

bechstedt.lab.mcgill.ca

Microtubules and Associated Proteins (MAPs)

Susanne Bechstedt

MicrotubulesAxonsDendrites

Cell shapeTransport by motors

Torsten Wittmann

MitosisMeiosis

Lilian Kabeche

Cilia

Gwen V. Childs

Protofilament

α

βTubulin (GTP)

+

CKAP2 increases spontaneous microtubule nucleation

CKAP2 Knockouts show severe spindle defects as well as ‘donut’ nuclei and multinucleated cells

HT1080 cells CKAP2 homozygous KO

MicrotubulesDNA

Multipolar spindles & chromosome alignment ‘Donut’ nucleiAzriel Lopez

Dr. Joaquin Ortega Professor

Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology

joaquin.ortega@mcgill.ca

joaquinortega9.wixsite.com/ortegalabmcgill