Ryan Laughlin, MBS'09Ryan first became interested in research during his undergraduate education at Simpson College. At Simpson he was involved in a study that followed the morphologic changes in artificially twinned sea urchin embryos. Following his undergraduate education, Ryan entered the then newly formed Masters Biomedical Sciences program at Des Moines University. While at DMU, he joined Dr. Henry’s lab and began studying the effects of commonly used cholesterol lowering drugs, or “statins”, on cellular proliferation. Ryan believes that his work in the Masters of Biomedical Sciences program will help him in his future clinical pursuits.
Education
B.S. in Biology, Simpson College 2006
Masters in Biomedical Sciences Des Moines University
Current Projects
Determining whether distinct simvastatin-induced cell cycle arrests are dependent or independent of the inhibition of mevalonate synthesis
Developing a model for long term simvastatin treatment of cell cultures
Determining if simvastatin induced changes in cellular growth are due to changes in cellular machinery
Presentations
Munyaka, MT, J Giles, R Laughlin, and MK Henry. Screening the effects of commonly used statin drugs on human myeloid leukemia cell growth. Drake University Conference on Undergraduate Research in the Sciences. Drake University, Des Moines, IA, April 17, 2008. (Poster)
R Laughlin, J Giles, and MK Henry. Are statin induced cell cycle changes dependent on the inhibition of HMG-CoA reductase? Des Moines University Research Symposium. Des Moines University, Des Moines, IA, April 17, 2008. (Poster)
R Laughlin, J Giles, and MK Henry. Inhibitory effects of “statins” on myeloid cell proliferation by mevalonate -dependent and -independent mechanisms. Des Moines University Research Symposium. Des Moines University, Des Moines, IA, April 23, 2008. (Poster)
R Laughlin, J Giles, and MK Henry. Inhibitory effects of “statins” on myeloid cell proliferation by mevalonate -dependent and -independent mechanisms. Des Moines University Friday Seminar Series Spring 2009. Des Moines University, Des Moines, IA, January 23, 2009. (Oral Presentation)
R Laughlin, J Giles, and MK Henry. Inhibitory effects of “statins” on myeloid cell proliferation by mevalonate -dependent and -independent mechanisms. Iowa Academy of Science Spring Seminar. Des Moines University, Des Moines, IA, April 18, 2009. (Oral Presentation)
