Isabella Saldana
Class of 2022
Education: Blended BS + MS Animal Sciences at Cal Poly
Biography:
Isabella is a Cal Poly Animal Science graduate who received her Bachelor’s in 2020. She is fascinated by regenerative medicine because it is an emerging field that she believes will elevate our current understanding of pathophysiology and disease while simultaneously improving patient outcomes. While Isabella is excited to explore the numerous research opportunities this field has to offer, she is particularly interested in the application of stem cell research to the study and modeling of neurological disease. Upon completion of the program, Isabella plans on continuing her education to pursue a PhD. or entering industry.
Internship:
Isabella is completing her internship at the Sanford Consortium for Regenerative Medicine as part of the Laurent lab in the OB/GYN and Reproductive Sciences department. There, she is working on a project involving the validation and in vitro characterization of a novel 3D placenta-on-a-chip model that mimics the functional unit of the placenta, a chorionic villus. The ultimate goal of this project is to use this model to evaluate functional transport of biomolecules and drugs under both normal and disease conditions. As part of this project, she is responsible for the culture and maintenance of placental-derived cells used in the model as well as assisting with functional transport studies.