Overview

I’m a student under dual supervision of Dr Benjamin Housden and Dr James Wakefield. My research focuses on studying the roles of Polo kinase during cell division. I am using the variable dose analysis screening method developed by Dr Housden to determine functional interactors of Polo to further our understanding of the complex machinery that controls cell division.

I completed my ScB degree in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Brown University. Within my first few weeks there I joined the laboratory of Dr. Robert Reenan where I completed an independent project using the TALEN genetic editing technology under the guidance of Dr. Leila Rieder, then a fifth year graduate student.

Post matriculation, I expanded my research toolbox at the Drosophila RNAi Screening Center (DRSC), a functional genomics platform at Harvard Medical School, which provides bioinformatics and cell-based and in vivo screening support to the Drosophila community. The DRSC was founded by Prof. Norbert Perrimon and retains a very close working relationship with his lab. As a research assistant, I split my time between generating reagents for cell-based screens for outside researchers and assisting in collaborations with post-doctoral fellows in the Perrimon lab.

An up-to-date CV can always be found on my personal webpage (maintained under my full name: Katarzyna Sierzputowska).

Research group links

• Cellular and Chemical Biology