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The Escorcia Laboratory

Escorcia Lab Current Members

 Photo of Kylie Lawson

Kylie Lawson

Co-mentors: Mollie McIntosh, Ph.D. & Hanna Wetzel, Ph.D.

Major: B.S. in Biomedical Sciences and Enviromental Sciences 

Class Level: Junior (2025)

Career Goal: Ph.D. in Enviromental Molecular Science

Lab Publication(s):

Contributing author in Early-Life Caffeine Exposure Induces Morphological Changes and Altered Physiology in Caenorhabditis elegans (2023). Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. 

Scientific Meeting Presentation(s)

Lab Project(s): 

  1. Development of fission yeast- and C. elegans-based microscopy reporter systems for microplastic toxicity (genetics, physiology, microscopy, enviromental science)
  2. Development of fission yeast C. elegans-based microscopy reporter systems for metal toxicity (genetics, physiology, microscopy, enviromental science)
  3. Determination of genetic pathways affected by synthetic and industrial contaminants of urban bodies of water (genetics, physiology, microscopy, enviromental science)
  4. Contribution of ribosome stalling to early cancer onset (bioinformatics)
  5. Generation of a microscopy system in fission yeast to detect aneuploidies linked to microplastic exposure (genetics, physiology, environmental science, microscopy)
  6. Development of stain-based assays to quantitate metabolic ang ageing changes in fission yeast and nematodes (genetics, physiology, environmental science, microscopy, and ecology)
  7. Quantification of changes to insect mitochondrial structure and potential in response to ageing accelerants (genetics, physiology, environmental science, microscopy, and ecology)
  8. Quantification of changes to insect gut morphology in response to ageing disruptors (genetics, physiology, environmental science, microscopy, and ecology)

 

Nijah Simmons

Co-Mentors: Hanna Wetzel, Ph.D. 

Major: B.S. in Biology 

Class Level: Senior (2024)

Career Goal: M.D.

Lab Publication(s):

Contributing author in Early-Life Caffeine Exposure Induces Morphological Changes and Altered Physiology in Caenorhabditis elegans (2023). Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications. 

Scientific Meeting Presentation(s)

Lab Project(s):

  1. The role of excess creatinine on early muscle aging in C. elegans (microscopy, genetics, physiology)
  2. Simulating the functional effects of accelerated muscles aging in C. elegans (microscopy, genetics, physiology, and pharmacology)

 

 

Hannah Doerger

Major: B.S. in Biology 

Class Level: Senior (2024)

Career Goals: M.S. in Genetic Counseling 

Lab Projects: 

  1. The role of DNA damage in lipid level deregulation in fission yeast (genetics, molecular biology, microscopy)
  2. Role of the fission yeast fork protection complex component Swi1 (Timeless) to DNA damage and aging (bioinformatics, genetics, molecular biology, microscopy)
  3. Examination of mutational disruption to Timeless coding sequence integrity in human cancers (bioinformatics, genetics, protein-folding analysis)

 

Leighton Gammage

Major: B.S. in Biology

Class Level: Junior (2025)

Career Goals: Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences 

Lab Projects: 

  1. The role of DNA damage in lipid level deregulation and mitochondrial aging in C. elegans (genetics, molecular biology, microscopy)
  2. Effect on lipid levels of different types of DNA damage in C. elegans (genetics, molecular biology, microscopy)
  3. Effect of accelerated aging on lipid deposition and abundance in C. elegansfollowing genotoxic exposure (genetics, molecular biology, microscopy)

 

Ryan Meehan

Major: B.S. in Biomedical Sciences 

Class Level: Senior (2024)

Career Goals: M.D. 

Lab Projects: 

  1. The role of DNA damage in lipid deregulation in fission yeast (genetics, molecular biology, microscopy)
  2. Role of the fission yeast fork protection complex component Swi3 (CBX1-CBX5) to DNA damage and aging (bioinformatics, genetics, molecular biology, microscopy)
  3. Examination of mutational disruption to CBX1 coding sequence integrity in human cancers (bioinformatics, genetics, protein-folding analysis)

 

Mia Rose

Major: B.S. in Biology 

Class Level: Senior (2024)

Career Goals: M.D. 

Lab Projects: 

  1. The role of DNA damage in lipid deregulation in fission yeast (genetics, molecular biology, microscopy)
  2. Role of the fission yeast homolog of PTEN (ptn1) to DNA damage and aging (bioinformatics, genetics, molecular biology, microscopy)
  3. Examination of mutational disruption to PTEN coding sequence integrity in human cancers (bioinformatics, genetics, protein-folding analysis)

 

Shayne Skrtic

Co-Mentor: Dr. Dorothy Engle, Ph.D.

Major: B.S. in Biomedical Sciences 

Class Level: Junior (2025)

Career Goal: M.D.

Lab Project(s):

  1. Role of lipid regulators in human cancers (Bioinformatics, statistics)
  2. The response to genotoxic stress in replication stress mutants in fission yeast (Genetics, bioinformatics, physiology, microscopy)
  3. Quantification of morphological change in response to xenobiotic exsposure in fission yeast and C. elegans (Genetics, microscopy, statistics)
  4. Genotyping of fission yeast strains via use of an iPhone application that tracks differential growth across media types (Genetics, physiology, computer science, statistics)
  5. Contribution of Maf1 to different human cancers and premature onset linked to Maf1 dysregulation (Bioinformatics, statistics, structure modeling and simulation) 

 

LUCY (Honorary Research Assistant)

Major: B.S. in Canine Aging Genetics 

Class Level: Senior (O.G.)

Career Goals: Boss at the NIA

Lab Projects: 

  1. Provide opportunities for genetics students to pet her at heart's content and to reconnect, by proxy, with the furry family members at home. 
  2. Provides companionship and emotional support to Wilber and lab members when things get though in school and in lab.
  3. Provides happiness.