Katelyn e Jackson

Background

About Katelyn e Jackson

I am a biochemist with eight years of experience. The common link in my research is the study of nucleic acid and protein interactions. Such interactions are important for a wide range of cellular processes, and so has no shortage of interesting things to study. While we often think of our own immune systems, bacteria have their own immune system to combat phage infection called CRISPR. I study the recruitment of effector proteins to the Cascade surveillance complex and their role in degradation of invading phage DNA. I am also interested in how bacteria cope with DNA damage with the use of translesion polymerases to extend the new DNA past bulky damage on the template strand. The error-prone nature of this mode of DNA replication is implicated in the rise of antibiotic resistance. My PhD has given me opportunities to be a teaching assistant for multiple courses, including Organic Chemistry, Spectroscopic Methods of Structure Determination, and professional writing. I have found interactions with students rewarding.