Biomedical Science Personal Statement

What is life? It was this initial curiosity that led me into the magnetic world of biology. During my final year of higher secondary school, I came across the plant hybridization experiments of Gregor Johann Mendel, a famous botanist and the father of modern genetics. His work fostered my scientific temper and led me to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in Botany. However, during my undergraduate years I discovered that that the theoretical knowledge that I was gaining was at the organism level, and I wanted to delve deeper into understanding what was happening at the molecular level. This led me to pursue a Master’s degree in Biophysics and Molecular Biology. It is my unchanging aspiration to explore and to discover the mysteries of the inner workings

First, the supportive environment and high standards for scientific research that this program will provide is unparalleled. Second, quality mentoring by world-class faculty, opportunities for interdisciplinary study, and a collaborative, friendly academic community were all important to me as I performed my search for a top-notch graduate program in the world and GSBS meets all of these criteria. Third, the GSBS program will provide me with an opportunity to conduct translational research, where I can apply the findings from basic science to enhance human health and well-being. Fourth and most importantly, there are several professors affiliated with the GSBS program whose thrust areas of research align well with my scientific

George A Calin’s laboratory. Two of the group's research projects in which I am highly motivated to work are the Identification of microRNA as a diagnostic marker in human cancers and Development of new therapeutic strategies involving microRNAs. Prof. Calin’s pioneered the idea that microRNA genes are involved in human tumorigenesis (Calin et al., PNAS, 2002) and his group also proved that another family of ncRNAs named ultraconserved genes (UCGs) are involved in human cancers and directly interact with miRNAs (Calin et al., Cancer Cell, 2007). Also, the idea that microRNAs could function as hormones is truly fascinating (Cortez et al., Nature Reviews, 2011). My motivation to work with Prof. Calin led to me contacting him via Email and Skype, and I was thrilled to get an encouraging reply. In addition to the role of non-coding RNA in cancer, I am also intrigued by Dr. Xiongbin Lu's research work on investigating the roles of microRNAs and other non-coding RNAs in the DNA damage response. These labs and many others would be a good fit for my background and research