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.

Research group links

• Cellular and Chemical Biology

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Research

Research interests

I am currently investigating physical interactors of Polo kinase.

Publications

Variable Dose Analysis: A Novel High-throughput RNAi Screening Method for Drosophila Cells. Sierzputowska K, Baxter CR, and Housden BE. Bio-protocol 8(24): e3112. DOI: 10.21769/BioProtoc.3112.

Zinc Detoxification: A Functional Genomics and Transcriptomics Analysis in Drosophila melanogaster Cultured Cells. Mohr SE, Rudd K, Hu Y, Song WR, Gilly Q, Buckner M, Housden BE, Kelley C, Zirin J, Tao R, Amador G, Sierzputowska K, Comjean A, Perrimon N. G3 (Bethesda). 2018 Feb 2;8(2):631-641. doi: 10.1534/g3.117.300447.

Reagent and Data Resources for Investigation of RNA Binding Protein Functions in Drosophila melanogaster Cultured Cells. Mohr SE, Hu Y, Rudd K, Buckner M, Gilly Q, Foster B, Sierzputowska K, Comjean A, Ye B, Perrimon N. G3 (Bethesda). 2015 Jul 21;5(9):1919-24. doi: 10.1534/g3.115.019364.

Presentations

• April 2018 SW Fly Meeting, Bristol, UK
• May 2018 ExeBioCon
• February 2019 HBIGS Winter School ''Molecular mechanisms in mitosis''
• March 2019 ADRC 2019, Dallas, TX

Society Memberships

• Sigma Xi
• Genetics Society of America
• British Society for Cell Biology

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External Engagement and Impact

Other

Outreach/involvement

• May 2018 Exeter Pint of Science volunteer
• CLESCon 2018 organizing committee
• Graduate Research Student Representative at the Postgraduate Research Liaison Forum (PGRLF)
• BioCon2019 organizing committee
• CLESCon 2019 organizing committee
• Exeter Scholars (summer 2019) demonstrator

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Teaching

Fall term

Demonstrator:

• BIO1334 Genetics (MedSci)
• BIO1332 Biochemistry (MedSci)

Spring term:

• Graduate Teaching Assistant BIO1339 Cells

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