What’s it like to perform groundbreaking research and then publish your findings in the leading scientific journal of our time?
Joon Sub Lee ’11 can answer that question—with a twist. Not only did the former T-P valedictorian recently coauthor a Nature article, but he’s still in his early 20s. That makes him a rarity even among the elite procession of names that have appeared in the magazine.
Modesty, however, is also in the young researcher’s repertoire. Although Lee is currently pursuing undergraduate degrees in molecular cell biology and public health at the University of California, Berkeley, he claims to have “a long way to go before I can call myself a scientist.”
That may be true in a strictly professional sense. But in his sophomore year at Berkeley Lee began working at the university’s widely respected He Lab, a hot spot for advances in cell biology. Soon he was immersed in the histological analysis of mouse tissue samples. Making precise observations of physiological defects in the mice, Lee helped prove that a genetic component called miR-34/449 plays an important role in the cellular process known as ciliogenesis.
Hardly your typical college-level biology. The results described in Nature could pave the way for new research into COPD and other respiratory tract diseases. Not bad for a kid who, once upon a time, wondered if his decision to attend high school in the U.S. would have “good results.” It’s that kind of questioning, of course, that makes a good scientist.
So—what was his reaction when he learned of his Nature accomplishment, only three years after graduating from Trinity-Pawling? “I’m not going to lie,” says Lee. “It was a pretty awesome feeling.”