Amy

Amy 
Ashland High School
Ashland, MA

Mentor: 
Patricia Rogers
Flow Cytometry 
 

Amy was motivated to apply to the BSSP because the program “would give me access to a prestigious lab to do biomedical research and advance my knowledge with resources I would not have access to.” During her time in the program, she conducted research at the Flow Cytometry Facility, collaborating with a team of skilled professionals who process a variety of sample types for rapid, multi-parametric analysis of single cells in solution. While traditional flow cytometers analyze cell features as they pass through one or multiple lasers, scientists at the Broad Institute are now exploring the BD FACSDiscover™ S8 Cell Sorter, a cutting-edge technology that not only measures the physical and chemical characteristics of single cells but also provides detailed microscopic images of them. Over the summer, Amy and her partner developed a protocol capable of differentiating apoptotic cells from healthy ones using various fluorescent dyes. They successfully designed a method to detect healthy, apoptotic, and post-apoptotic cells with propidium iodide (PI) and Annexin V-FITC fluorescent dyes. Their work has direct implications and can now be adopted as a standard practice in the Flow Cytometry Facility, aiding other scientists in cancer research, infectious disease studies, and other fields. Looking back at her experience, Amy was able to do biomedical research in a lab with advanced technology. Through her time here, she learned “the importance of standing true to your values and the importance of networking, and it showed me how inspiring scientific research can be, leading me to want to pursue a scientific research career while still being passionate about social change.”