Kady Knowles

Experience

• 

  Renfrew Park Community Centre

  Jan 2014 - Aug 2017

  Violin Instructor

  Provided beginner violin lessons in a private or group setting to students in the age range from 4-65 years old.

• 

  Simon Fraser University

  Jan 2017 - Aug 2017

  Undergraduate Research Assistant

  • Developed a Thin Layer Chromatography system to separate CTP, CDP, CMP, and CDP-choline • Prepared DNA constructs of multiple CTP: phosphocholine cytidylyltransferase (CCT) variants utilizing site-directed mutagenesis• Utilized tryptophan fluorescence quenching assays to investigate the ability of CCT mutants to interact with constructed lipid vesicles• Implemented a radioactive assay to determine the effect of mutations on CCT enzymatic activity

• 

  Thai Town Restaurant

  Nov 2017 - May 2018

  Hostess Server

  Greeted and seated guests upon arrival, Took orders, Coordinated with other staff and kitchen to prepare food for customers, and Prepared an enjoyable environment for the best experience for customers.

• 

  Simon Fraser University

  Jan 2018 - Dec 2022

  • Acquiring a management role by organizing laboratory meetings and events for lab members, maintaining laboratory inventory and equipment, and participating in faculty-wide lab manager meetings• Mentoring undergraduate students to develop essential laboratory research skills including problem-solving and critical thinking skills• Undertaking multiple projects characterizing triple-negative breast cancer utilizing various techniques in molecular biology, cell biology, and biochemistry • Project 1: Characterizing triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) with TP53 and RB1 mutations - Generating in vitro cell line models using CRISPR-Cas9 technology to stably knock out TP53 from human TNBC cell lines - Employing quantitative PCR to measure changes in the expression level of metastatic promoting genes - Utilizing the Boyden Chamber assay to analyze the oncogenic effect of mutated TP53 and RB1 genes on TNBC cell lines motility - Identifying the effect of mutated TP53 and RB1 genes on the cell cycle of the generated in vitro cell line models using flow cytometry - Collaborating and exchanging knowledge with a lab from an international institution to identify synthetic lethal pairs for TP53 and RB1 genes in breast cancer using a computational approach• Project 2: Characterizing the kinetics between the key co-activator of the HIF-1 transcriptional complex and the rest of the complex - Designing protocols for expressing and purifying various recombinant proteins including GFP-, GST-, and His-tagged proteins utilizing affinity chromatography - Independently developing a protocol to characterize the kinetics of protein-protein and protein-peptide interaction using Surface Plasmon Resonance Show less

  • Teaching Assistant

    Sept 2018 - Dec 2022

  • Research Associate/ Lab Manager

    Jan 2018 - Dec 2022