Scholar Profiles
Ted Lin
2000 - 2001 University Scholar
Mentor: Martha Campbell-Thompson
(College of Medicine)
College of Liberal Arts & Sciences
"At times I was impatient with my research. But after hearing Dr. Campbell explain how many times she has had to repeat experiments, I found that things do work out for themselves with time."
The prospect of creative thinking outside the classroom setting attracted Ted Lin to the University Scholars Program. A junior from Orange Park, Lin's interest in biochemistry and medicine has been so stimulated by his USP work that he plans on changing his major to immunology. Lin is a volunteer in the Best Buddies program and has been named to the Dean's List. (Photo by John Elderkin)
Research Description:
This lab is studying the protective role of estrogens in human colon cancer progression. Women have decreased colon cancer incidence and mortality rates compared to men, even in families with a genetic predisposition for colon cancer. Estrogen replacement therapy decreases colon cancer risk in postmenopausal women. These clinical findings support our proposal that estrogens decrease susceptibility to colon cancer. A second estrogen receptor has recently been discovered and is expressed in human colon. The research hypothesis is that this new estrogen receptor, ER_, directly mediates anti-tumor effects of estrogens in colon cancer.
During the summer, I was involved in several other projects to expose him to a multitude of research strategies including RNA isolation, reverse transcription-PCR, and plasmid purification. He assisted in cloning and purifying a human vitamin D receptor (VDR) cDNA fragment that was used to study VDR mRNA regulation in human colon cancer cells treated with estrogens. He also assisted in studies that showed estrogens increase VDR mRNA levels in the upper intestines of ovariectomized rats.
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