TREPAR 1547 No. of Pages 2
TrendsTalk
Katherine Ralston: Attitude, Resilience, and Cell-Nibbling Parasites
[1_TD$IF]In the last of the Trends in Parasitology 2016 [10_TD$IF]TrendsTalk series on Outstanding Women in Parasitology, we feature Katherine Ralston, an Assistant Professor at the University of California, Davis. Katy started her lab at UC Davis in 2014, where she continues her investigation of the mechanisms underlying pathogenesis in Entamoeba histolytica. In this short interview, Katy talks about how, as a young female professor, she is often mistaken as a trainee, which speaks to our implicit bias on what a professor or scientist should [1_TD$IF]be like. Katy also highlights the importance of resilience and of a realistic attitude [12_TD$IF]toward the multiple roadblocks faced by scientists and reflects on the importance of mentors in her career.
in junior high and high school. The wonders and the complexity of how organisms and life ‘work’ caught my interest. I remember distinctly how the fascination overcame even the initial disgust of things like the typical dissections that are done in biology classes. Once we dissected an eye, and could see how delicate and complicated it was, all I could think was ‘this is so cool’. Because I enjoyed biology, I went on to major in genetics as an undergraduate, with an initial goal of entering a health profession. I don’t think that the career option of becoming a scientist, or the path that one would take to become a scientist, is apparent to many young people. I almost accidentally ended up taking this path, because I happened to take a job as a student assistant in a laboratory. This laboratory focused on viruses that infect plants, which stimulated my ongoing interest in microbes and how they interact with and manipulate their hosts. Moreover, teachers again stirred my interest in science. My upper division genetics classes were taught by an almost larger-than-life personality, Scott Hawley, whose goal was to teach undergraduates at a graduate-school level. Lectures were delivered at light speed and exams required problem solving, not memorization. Between how exciting these courses were and my positive experience as a student researcher, I decided to pursue science as a career.
What does your lab focus on?
My lab focuses on how E. histolytica causes disease. As a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Virginia, I was very curious about the potent host cell-killing activity of this parasite. The fact that this process was not well understood made it seem to be an important area for further study. Moreover, the species was literally named for this: ‘histolytica’ means ‘tissue What motivated you to become a dissolving’. In my studies, I found that scientist? amoebae kill human cells via an unusual Teachers initially inspired my interest in mechanism in which they bite off and science. I had[3_TD$IF] excellent biology teachers ingest human cell fragments. I termed this
‘amoebic trogocytosis’ (trogo-: nibble) since it is a nibbling process, unlike phagocytosis (whole-cell ingestion), and since it resembles processes that have also been called trogocytosis in other organisms. There is an exciting, emerging appreciation that many eukaryotes take bites from other cells, suggesting that this is fundamental. For example, trogocytosis plays a role in signaling between immune cells and intracellular bacteria stimulate host cell trogocytosis to promote their transfer from one cell to another. Other eukaryotic microbes appear to use trogocytosis for cell killing, including the ‘brain-eating’ amoeba Naegleria fowleri. It is exciting to think that cell nibbling might be fundamental to eukaryotic biology and that it might be exaggerated and exploited by microbes. We are working to understand the underlying mechanism as well as how it contributes to pathogenesis. We are also using trogocytosis as a vehicle to potentially uncover new host cell death and repair signaling. I think it is neat that host–microbe interactions often uncover new aspects of host biology. I imagine that my lab will also explore other aspects of host–amoeba interactions and other aspects of pathogenesis, in time. For example, it is really interesting that so many people can be asymptomatically infected with E. histolytica while others get invasive colitis or fatal extraintestinal disease. This parasite is not always a pathogen and this certainly demands further examination.
Based on your recent experience, what advice would you give early-career scientists planning to start their own lab? My advice to trainees would be to try to set yourself up for making the transition to running your own lab by thinking about it early in your career. In my own career, I thought very carefully about this at the time of starting my postdoctoral studies. I tried to think about a topic that was exciting to me and that I could see working
Trends in Parasitology, Month Year, Vol. xx, No. yy
1
TREPAR 1547 No. of Pages 2
on for many years. I also tried to find a postdoctoral advisor who was an excellent mentor and who was very supportive of trainees going on to launch their own labs. I would have hated to have been in an unsupportive situation at the time of setting out to start my own lab, so I tried to consider this before I[4_TD$IF] began my postdoctoral studies.
a professor. Many new professors are relatively young, but my peers who are male are generally not mistaken for trainees. I think it is likely that we as a society have an idea of what we expect a professor or a scientist to be like, and it is not the most diverse construct. This example is not particularly problematic, but small things like this can add up in the long run and I think that, overall, bias can create Finally, I would advise trainees to think extra challenges. about and cultivate resilience throughout their training. It is difficult to adequately Because bias can be subtle, and is instiexplain this to people in other fields, but tutionalized, it is difficult to call out and criticism and rejection are part of science. difficult to overcome. However, I find it Even in the best of times, when paylines encouraging that overt sexism is less are higher, not every grant application is prevalent today and I am optimistic about successful. Very few papers or grants get the efforts of many universities and sciena glowing review. Research is difficult and tific societies to shed light on structural roadblocks are frequently encountered. challenges and implicit biases faced by I think it is essential to cultivate a realistic women and members of other underrepattitude about this. I have heard a senior resented groups. scientist say that resilience is the single most important quality that you need to Collaboration is now the have to be successful. Your attitude is foundation of research. For some early-career researchers, incredibly important.
The role of mentors in the career development of young scientists has been the topic of much discussion. What role, if any, has mentorship had in your scientific As a small example of what I believe is career? implicit bias, since becoming a professor[13_TD$IF], I Mentors have played a huge role in my find that many (or most) people that I meet career. From Bryce Falk, who initially gave assume I am a student or a postdoc, never me the chance to work in his lab as an
2
Trends in Parasitology, Month Year, Vol. xx, No. yy
I also want to point out the importance of many people beyond these official advisors who have played smaller[15_TD$IF], but still important[16_TD$IF], roles. For example, other professors have helped by allowing me to perform experiments in their labs, critiquing my grant applications, helping me dissect reviewer comments, sitting through practice[6_TD$IF] talks, et cetera. I think you can’t overstate the importance of official advisors, but it takes [17_TD$IF]a community[18_TD$IF] of mentors to raise a scientist. Related to the point of having nothing to lose by reaching out to other scientists, I have gained a lot by asking for help from a variety of [19_TD$IF]people when I needed extra advice or a unique perspective.
I am grateful that I have encountered so many supportive people. Now I hope to reinvest this support in others. Finally, related to the importance of teachers in my own career, I really hope that I can be an inspiring teacher and that I can get I first asked someone to collaborate only students excited about science. shortly after starting my own lab, and I realized I had nothing to lose. Related to If you were not a scientist, what the point of resilience, I think it helps to would your alternative career be? approach this with the attitude that not Like many other scientists, I appreciate every attempt that you make to initiate nature and the outdoors, and I like to travel collaboration will be successful. However, and see the world. [20_TD$IF]If [21_TD$IF]I [2_TD$IF]was [23_TD$IF]not [24_TD$IF]a [25_TD$IF]scientist, [26_TD$IF]I you have nothing to lose by making the first would enjoy running a mountain hut or a[8_TD$IF] move and [14_TD$IF]starting a conversation. You B&B in a remote and scenic location in have much to gain if it does work out. I another country[9_TD$IF]. suspect that this also gets easier with time. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pt.2016.08.008
especially women, it might be intimidating to make that first Do you think you encountered move and initiate conversation any extra hurdles as a female that might lead to collaboration. scientist? This is difficult to answer, since it is hard for How do you manage this? me to know whether I have faced any more hurdles than anyone else. I have to say that my experience in science has been positive and I have generally experienced nothing but support and encouragement from mentors and colleagues. However, that would be a bit disingenuous, since there are still many challenges faced by women in science. Current views of gender issues in science suggest that we all have implicit biases. In many ways, overt sexism is less evident today, but[5_TD$IF] bias remains. Further, it seems likely that hurdles and implicit biases faced by women in science are also faced by members of other groups that are similarly underrepresented.
undergraduate, to my PhD and postdoc advisors Kent Hill and Bill Petri, I have had wonderful mentors. It is hard to adequately put into words, but these individuals are phenomenal scientists and mentors.