Graduate Research Assistant
Montana State University
Bozeman, Montana, United States
Esther Stopps is a PhD candidate in Chemical Engineering at Montana State University. She is originally from Idaho Falls, Idaho, and has Bachelor’s degrees in Chemical Engineering and Biological Engineering from Montana State University. Under the mentorship of Dr. Stephanie McCalla, Esther is researching the kinetics of DNA binding and how multiple binding sites, secondary structures, and nucleotide arrangement change the binding behavior of single-stranded DNA and RNA molecules. She is interested in characterizing complex DNA binding kinetics and using that information to design tunable biosensors. Her work aims to further the field of nucleic acid biosensor development by providing tools to predict and design for large, conclusive bursts of signal in the presence of a disease biomarker. This is broadly applicable to many types of disease diagnostics, such as cancer screening, neurodegenerative disease, and viral infections.
Friday, October 13, 2023
5:15 PM – 5:30 PM PDT