Carolyn de Graaf
Why did you choose the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute for your PhD?
I had been an Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program (UROP) student at the institute, and then completed my honours here, so I knew the institute had a good atmosphere and great projects available.
I had also worked with my PhD supervisor before in the UROP program, so I knew that I found his research exciting.
What do you see as the benefits of doing a PhD at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute?
The institute has fantastic resources, a great collaborative environment, exciting science and there are opportunities to go to conferences.
A couple of highlights have been presenting my work at conferences and visiting overseas laboratories and making great friends with other PhD students.
When did you start your PhD?
2006, and I handed in early in 2010.
What is the subject of your PhD research?
I am interested in the genetic regulation of blood cell production. Each day you produce a trillion new blood cells, of 10 diff erent types, and I am interested in the genes that encourage blood stem cells to choose a particular lineage.
To do this I have been looking at mice with mutations in transcription factors that infl uence their blood cell production.
What does a typical working day involve?
There’s no typical day, but over a week I might collect mouse tissues for experiments, prepare cells for analysis with fl ow cytometry, prepare RNA and DNA for molecular experiments, plan and discuss experiments with other researchers, do computer and statistical analysis of my data and write papers and presentations.
What did you study at uni?
A Bachelor of Information Technology and a Bachelor of Biomedical Science. As well as computer science, I majored in genetics and biochemistry. I did honours at the institute and I use both bioinformatics and wet lab techniques in my work.