Juhee Kim

Green Fellows project abstract:

Imbalances in lipid homeostasis can deleteriously impact health, however, understanding the molecular mechanism by which cells sense and respond to lipid depletion is vital and remains unclear. NHR-49, a nuclear hormone receptor, is a transcription factor that regulates beta oxidation through genes involved in fatty acid synthesis. Under starved conditions, NHR-49 dissociates from the vesicle and translocates to the nucleus, activating its various transcripts to re-establish cellular lipid homeostasis. This nucleocytoplasmic transport of NHR-49 is mediated by importin IMB-3 and exportin XPO-1 via binding with NHR-49.

 

​​What does research mean to you? 

Research is being creative and brave to ask questions.

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Tell us about your journey​!

When I started to have interests in research field in my sophomore year of college, world pandemic happened and I did not have chance to get in to the lab. After one and a half year of online labs, everything went back to normal in-person classes, and I saw the Green Fellows poster in SLC building. Even though I knew that my graduation will be pushed back if I join the Green Fellows program, having actual experience was more important to me, so I reached out to Deb and applied for the program. I never expected that I will be selected since I did not have any other research experience, but that’s when my journey started!

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What was your favorite part about the program? 

I love how this program helps you to be matched with the lab of your interest. Green Fellows team is very supportive to get you work through all the hardships and confusion that you get from the failures of research. They check up on you to be on track but push you to the challenge at the same time so you can actually learn and grow as a scientist

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What was the biggest thing you learned from the program?

The biggest thing I learned from the program is that if I don’t reach out or ask a question, I will never learn. No one, even who has PhDs, knows everything, and there is no such thing as dumb question!

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Advice for Future Green Fellows

It is okay to make mistake, not understand the concept at once, or to get data that you did not expect. You are in progress of being a researcher.