Hi, I am Carmen Puentes, and I recently joined the virtual internship at the University of California, Davis School of Medicine, in the Department of Physiology and Membrane Biology. I am currently working with Dr. Vladimir Yarov-Yarovoy and a second-year Ph.D. student, Brandon Harris, who has been leading the internship.
Since the internship had already started, I had to quickly learn both the behavior of proteins and ion channels and the computational aspects of the internship. To familiarize myself with proteins, my mentors recommended I play a video game called Foldit. This video game has enabled me to see how the different sequences of amino acids dictate the function and three-dimensional structure of proteins. I also had to learn the command line SSH, which is what allows us to use the program, Rosetta. Rosetta is the program that will be analyzing the proteins that I have been working on. However, the main program that I have been using is Chimera. Chimera allows us to visualize and manipulate proteins. This is very helpful since our main program, Rosetta, can only work with certain constraints.
I am lucky to not be alone during this challenging time. Two Pinterns, Eliram Reyes-Powell and Kelly Stellmacher, are interning with Dr. Yarov-Yarovoy. I am happy to have the support of a friend and an outstanding student to make the process of catching up easier for me.
Before this internship, I did not realize the importance of proteins. Proteins are crucial for functions of the body like heartbeats. However, only a small amount of proteins have been created ‘naturally’ by evolution. If we compare this number to the number of possible combinations of amino acids that can create proteins, the number is very small. The study of proteins can improve the pharmaceutical industry by making new and better vaccines and medicine. I am so grateful for the experience. As someone interested in pharmaceutical science, this has made me realize the complexity of the topic and how developing medicine and vaccines is not a simple process.
Due to the current state of the world, I was not able to do this internship in person and meet and interact with my mentors and my fellow interns. However, I don’t feel distant because our mentor, Brandon Harris, has always been very helpful and resourceful and is always there when we need him.
At home, I have tried to keep myself busy, either hiking or walking with my dog Reiley. I have found this time great to spend with my family and to help my Hispanic community become aware of the challenges that this country is currently facing.
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