Lindsay Johnson, Ph.D.

My time in graduate school provided exposure to cutting-edge research, amazing collaborations, and memories that will last a lifetime.

It was important for me to choose an institution that was committed to translating research into treatments for patients and offered expertise across multiple disciplines. I wanted integrate my background as a chemical engineer with other areas that excite me, such as cancer biology, nanomedicine, and drug delivery. UTSW also offered a unique program called the Mechanisms of Disease and Translational Sciences (MoDTS) that allowed for this integration and providedmentors who were themselves physician-scientists.

I worked in the laboratory of Daniel Siegwart, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Biochemistry and a member of the Harold C. Simmons Comprehensive Cancer Center who studies RNA lipid nanoparticles.

My doctoral work focused on understanding the cell-specific uptake of nanoparticles for gene therapy in the liver.

The project got noticed and earned me the predoctoral fellowship from the PhRMA Foundation to support my work. One of my proudest science-related accomplishments was having this research published and shared with the scientific community.

Over the years, the Siegwart laboratory has become family, and I have received support in and out of the lab. My fondest memories include spending holidays and celebrating life accomplishments together.

I also have a passion for giving back to the community. I completed a 200-hour community service project through the Albert Schweitzer Fellowship program and served on United to Serve. For my service, I earned the bronze and gold President’s Volunteer Service Awards for contributing over 350 service hours.