Jennifer Kandell
Class of 2021
Education: Blended BS + MS Biomedical Engineering at Cal Poly
Biography
Jennifer is interested in regenerative medicine because this emerging field combines her passions for engineering and lab research. From understanding root causes to developing innovative treatments, Jennifer is intrigued by the use of biomaterials and stem cells to harness repair mechanisms. She aspires to pursue a career with an emphasis on imaging techniques and 3D tissue culture to merge her interests for immunotherapy and cancer research into a thriving engineering career. After completing the CIRM program, Jennifer plans on entering industry or continuing her education to obtain a PhD.
Jennifer completed her internship at Thermo Fisher Scientific in the Cell Biology Research and Development group under Dr. Uma Lakshmipathy. This lab focused on translational workflows involving stem cells and immune cells to further advance cell therapy technologies. Jennifer developed analytical assays to characterize lentivirus and lentivirus-modified immune cells while supporting an emerging product. These assays aided the understanding of cell identity during research as well as support quality control checks prior to cellular therapy patient use. Jennifer’s project was to explore lentivirus construction methods and develop characterization assays pertaining to viral integration in immune cells.
