DURHAM, N.H. - University of New Hampshire senior Jenny Jing has been selected as an Alvan T. - Viola D. Fuller Junior Research Fellow by the American Cancer Society. The prestigious Fuller Fellowships give undergraduate students from New England an opportunity to participate in laboratories performing cancer-related research for 10 weeks in the summer of 2013.

Jing, a biomedical sciences major and Honors Program student from Durham, will work in the Massachusetts General Hospital lab of Andrea McClatchey, professor of pathology at the Harvard Medical School. The fellowship provides Jing with a stipend of $4,500.

With her sights set on attending medical school to pursue a joint M.D./Ph.D., Jing calls the Fuller Fellowship a dream come true. She got the news while in Rudman Hall, home of several UNH research laboratories, and "I was jumping up and down in the hallways," she says.

McClatchey researches the familial cancer syndrome neurofibromatosis type two, which features the development of nervous system tumors. "She's manipulating the proteins and cytoskeleton at the cell cortex to study the formation of tumors. She's really impressive," says Jing.

Jing credits her UNH experience, rich with work in research labs, with helping her secure the competitive fellowship. She worked on the genetics of the strawberry in the lab of professor Tom Davis for three years, and this past year, joined Anthony Tagliaferro, professor emeritus of nutrition, in his lab. She also explored the human element of health care by working with Semra Aytur, assistant professor of health management and policy, on public health research.

"I really wanted to do something more than what's in the classroom. You can't learn science just by regurgitating facts from a textbook," she says, adding that she feels fortunate to "have these professors who are like family."

Because "nobody wants a walking Wikipedia," Jing made extracurricular leadership an essential component of her undergraduate years as well, serving as president of the Golden Key international honor society. She's also been active in the Office of Multicultural Student Affairs and says the diversity of Boston influenced her decision to pursue her fellowship there.

Plus, she says, "Mass General is one of the greatest hospitals in the nation."

Photograph available to download: /unhtoday/news/releases/2013/apr/jing.jpg
Caption: University of New Hampshire senior Jenny Jing received a prestigious Fuller Fellowship from the American Cancer Society.
Credit: Mike Ross, UNH Photographic Services

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