The Origin Story of the Repro-Eco Tox Lab
- Kylie Rock
- Apr 8
- 2 min read
Updated: 13 minutes ago
By: Kylie Rock, Ph.D.
The Repro-Eco Tox Lab at Clemson University opened its doors in August 2023, and wow, has it transformed since then! Back then, it was a one-person show with just me, myself, and I, amidst ongoing renovations. When I first arrived, the walls were up, and the cabinets and countertops were in place, but there was still a long way to go to turn the space into a fully functional lab. This meant diving into crucial decisions about what equipment to buy and who to bring on board.
Our top priority was to hire a lab technician, a full-time team member who could assist with lab setup, establish safety and experimental protocols, and eventually mentor incoming graduate and undergraduate students. I was thrilled when Paige Powell, a recent graduate and fellow Wolfpack Alum from North Carolina State University, reached out to express her interest in the position. She also came highly recommended by a colleague. After an engaging Zoom meeting with Paige, it was an easy decision to offer her the job!
As the fall semester unfolded, I dove into teaching, ordering equipment, and crafting protocols, all with excitement for Paige's arrival in January 2024. The lab began filling up with boxes of equipment and supplies, each one adding to my growing anticipation!
With the New Year came the arrival of Paige, two graduate students, and a handful of undergraduates. By the end of February our lab was buzzing with energy and truly taking shape! Paige was busy training everyone in lab safety, graduate students were teaching undergraduates molecular assays, and we were really starting to bond as a group.
Top Left: Chloe Schmidt and Kylie Artosky learning about lab safety from Paige ©Kylie Rock. Top Right: Maryam Afghah teaching Chloe and Kylie a molecular assay known as genotyping ©Paige Powell. Bottom Left: Paige, Zachary Padgett, and Mary Boland palling around in the lab ©Paige Powell. Bottom Right: The first Repro-Eco Tox Lab photo, 3/29/2024 ©Subham Dasgutpa.
It's hard to believe that it's been just over a year since we snapped our first lab photo and dove into research projects that set the stage for our research program. We're exploring a thrilling mix of fields like reproductive biology, microbiology, and ecotoxicology. Our work spans an incredible range of organisms—from marine microbes and sharks to mice and humans. Plus, we're delving into every level of biological organization, from molecules and cells to tissues, organisms, and entire populations.
One: Collecting sediment from South Carolina estuaries to culture microbes in the lab ©Kylie Rock. Two: Human vaginal epithelial cells that we are culturing ©Kylie Rock. Three: Cross-section of a mouse placenta ©Avery Herren. Four: Bull shark caught in St. Helena Sound off the coast of South Carolina ©Mel Walker.
I'm really looking forward to reflecting on the lab's growth next year— knowing this crew, it's going to be incredibly exciting!
Comments