Two exceptional undergraduates, Jolee Zhou and Alice Rho, are breaking new ground in biophysics research with support from the M.R. Metzger Family Foundation.
Two undergraduate students, Jolee Zhou and Alice Rho, have been recognized for their exceptional research initiatives through funding from the M.R. Metzger Family Foundation. This award grants access to 200 hours of research support within the Department of Physics at Washington University.
Their groundbreaking work, conducted under the mentorship of Dr. Shankar Mukherji, explores distinct yet complimentary dimensions of cellular biology. He emphasized the significance of their research, stating, “Jolee and Alice are exploring two very different edges of where our research is taking us: advanced tool development and data analysis for better understanding cellular organization.” Both students are pushing the boundaries of our understanding of cellular organization, advancing the future of biophysics with the potential to have great impacts for medicine.
Exploring Cellular Dynamics: Alice Rho’s Research
Sophomore Alice Rho, a computer science major, is investigating the dynamics of cellular structures to uncover fundamental principles that govern cellular organization and behavior. Her work aims to identify patterns that could provide a deeper understanding of the mechanisms behind cellular processes.
“My research investigates whether we can simplify the complexity of cellular organization by identifying a lower-dimensional latent space—a simpler framework that predicts cell behavior like organelle growth and cell division,” Alice explained. “If successful, this research could provide a tool to model and predict cellular behaviors, offering insights for biological and medical applications.”
Alice’s fascination with research began with her passion for understanding complex biological systems from a fundamental perspective. “What excites me most about my current project is its potential to simplify cellular dynamics into meaningful, predictive models,” she shared. “Knowing that this work could contribute to tools for researchers and clinicians keeps me motivated.”
Support from the department and Dr. Mukherji has been instrumental to Alice’s progress. “He helped me understand the broader context of the research and guided me in breaking it down into manageable steps,” Alice explained.
Alice plans to pursue a career where she’ll be able to do work at the intersection of medicine, research, and physics. “I’m particularly interested in applying biophysics principles, such as dimensionality reduction and systems modeling, to understand how cellular behavior impacts health and disease,” she added. “This research project contributes to that goal by giving me hands-on experience in using imaging data to uncover latent spaces and predictive models for cell behavior.”
Advancing Cellular Understanding: Jolee Zhou’s Research
Sophomore Jolee Zhou, who is pursuing a major in Physics with a focus on Biophysics, is at the forefront of tool development for cellular understanding. Jolee’s research aims to create a tunable tool to regulate molecular exchange between cells and their organelles, which could illuminate how cells monitor and respond to changes in organelle composition.
“We know that organelles are important for cellular activities, but we don’t know clearly whether and how cells monitor their organelle numbers,” Jolee explained. “For example, if I remove one mitochondrion, will the cell notice that? How will the cell respond to such change? My project aims at creating a shield/cloak to surround the organelle such that it will be “invisible” to the cell. This will be done by exploiting the properties of phase separation of certain proteins.”
Jolee’s interest in research was sparked during high school while working on a project aimed at conserving horseshoe crabs. “That was the first time I felt the magic of doing research.”
Her work has been supported by weekly meetings with Dr. Mukherji and graduate mentor Joe Glichowski, as well as lab meetings and book clubs. “We discuss experimental results in the past week, come up with potential solutions to problems, and discuss plans for the next week,” Jolee noted. “Whenever I face a problem that I cannot solve by myself, … I always find Dr. Mukherji supportive.”
Jolee recognizes that her current project is setting her on a trajectory of a successful career aligning biophysics research with advancements in medical treatments. “As my interest in biophysics grows, I hope to align my research with the potential development of medicine that can directly help cure patients,” she stated. “It is also a great opportunity for me to learn how cells work and acquire fundamental skills that will be valuable for supporting more research in the future.”
A Shared Vision of Excellence
Both students’ projects exemplify the intersection of creativity, intellectual rigor, and passion. “Even as undergraduates just starting out on research careers, both Alice and Jolee display levels of independence and persistence you'd expect from senior grad students and postdocs,” Dr. Mukherji commented. “The willingness to use their intellect to design ambitious research projects and then have the determination to come to lab every day and actually carry them out is something we can all learn from!”
The support from the M. R. Metzger Family Foundation has provided a platform for Jolee and Alice to delve into their innovative research projects, with potential implications for physics and medicine. As their work progresses, it not only advances our understanding of cellular biology but also highlights the transformative potential of undergraduate research.
