Doreen Banh, Biochemistry
Student’s Name: Doreen Banh
Country of Origin: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Undergraduate Department: Biochemistry
Why Faculty of Medicine?
The Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto is renowned for its achievements in medical breakthroughs. The faculty has a diverse stream of intellectuals from several different disciplines who strive in addressing the most challenging health-related questions. Wanting to experience this foremost, I chose this faculty for its vast number of instructors who have dedicated their time to teach and expand their expertise, and the opportunities to partake in independent research projects.
Why this department?
Before choosing this department, I was divided between choosing biology and chemistry. I had an interest in both categories but soon I discovered biochemistry, a combination of both. Thus, I chose the Department of Biochemistry to study how the structure and functions of biomolecules such as proteins influence how organisms can adapt to their surroundings to survive.
Recent Research Experience
After my 2nd year of study, I took advantage of the summer research opportunities provided by our department and I enrolled in BCH372Y1 (Summer Research in Biochemistry) under Dr. Alex Ensminger’s lab. At the Ensminger’s lab, my project was a mutagenic study identifying the critical residues of the SidB family of effector proteins in Legionella pneumophila, a causative agent of Legionnaires’ disease.
Future Education Plans and/or Career Goals.
Currently, I’m focused on completing my undergraduate degree. After attending a few Professional Development Workshops by Dr. Nana Lee, I learned that there are other career options outside of graduate or professional school. I want to be open-minded about these options. For my future plans, I have yet to decide but I want to pursue a career related to healthcare.