Dynamic duo works in an Oklahoma lab
Student scientists from across the state have finished their summer research at Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, with two students producing results together on a newly discovered cell.
Jarett Lewis and Monica Davis spent hours together in the lab during their internships as Fleming Scholars, peering into microscopes and pipetting solutions to learn about a specific lymphoid cell.
“The first couple of weeks that you are in the lab, you don’t know what you are doing,” said Davis, a sophomore at Northern Oklahoma College in Tonkawa.
“It is kind of nice to have somebody up here doing the same thing,” she said. “I have not done anything in immunology or molecular biology, and that is all that we have been doing.”
Thirteen students were in the eight-week program that is in its 82nd year.
“At the very beginning most are very shy, since this is a new experience,” said Heather Herbert, the Fleming Scholar program coordinator.
Lewis and Davis were able to explore the complexity of how to split a cell inside the lymphoid. Their research could help others in that area of study.
“You really have to understand concepts that you are not used to,” Davis said. “This summer has actually brought a huge challenge to me.”
Lewis and Davis agree that more work has to be done, but have learned that their future is in science.
“It is a good change in pace and a start to learning how to actually work in a lab,” Davis said.
The young scientists are paid throughout the summer from donations and endowments. It costs about $7,000 for each intern.
Lewis is planning on attending Dartmouth in the fall. His interest in science came about early after learning he had Type 1 diabetes.
“It developed into studying what I had and learning about the broader scientific research spectrum,” Lewis said.
He has also been a part of many other scientific programs including one during his junior year atBishop McGuinness High School.
During the Teen Leaders program at OMRF, he learned about the Fleming Scholars program and decided to try to become a part of it, even though he thought it was a long shot.
“It was an overwhelming experience when I learned that I was going to be a part of the program,” Lewis said.
He hopes to one day be working in the drug manufacturing business in research or administration.
“It takes a lot of time and work. It is a long road, and that is a cool thing to learn about,” Lewis said.
The student scientists presented their research to a group from OMRF and OU Medical Center.
The Fleming Scholar program was founded in 1956 and is named for the British scientist who discovered penicillin, Sir Alexander Fleming. He dedicated the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation at its opening in 1949.
More than 100 applications are received every year. Deadline to apply for next year’s program is early February.