Josh Hassing Awarded NIH T32 Fellowship

Medicinal Chemistry PhD student Josh Hassing was named a NIH T32 Fellow! Josh is advised by Dr. Carston Wagner and works closely with him in his laboratory. You can read more about the impactful work of the Wagner Lab here.

The NIH T32 training program is meant to enable institutions to recruit individuals for predoctoral and postdoctoral research training in specified shortage areas. The goal is to prepare qualified trainees for careers that have a significant impact on the health-related research needs of the nation.

Josh was selected as a fellow on the Chemistry Biology Interface Training Grant housed here at the University of Minnesota. Predoctoral trainees for this training grant program are selected from a pool of graduate students who have been recruited by the Chemistry; Biochemistry, Molecular Biology & Biophysics (BMBB); and Medicinal Chemistry Departments. You can read more about the CBITG here.

Josh is working with Professor Carston Wagner and Professor Luiza Mendonça on a project intended to characterize the binding of chemically self-assembled nanorings (CSANs) at tumor antigens via cryo-electron microscopy and tomography (cryo-EM/ET). 

Additionally, they will be working toward characterizing the interactome of B7-H3, an immune checkpoint molecule overexpressed in tumors, via photocatalytic proximity labeling. Ultimately, their goal is to provide novel information regarding the binding and mechanism of action of CSANs while uncovering antigens proximal to B7-H3 for future development of therapeutics with synergistic anti-tumor effects.

CBITG Fellows also participate in co-curricular activities such as attending the CBIG seminar series, organizing the Chemical Biology Colloquium, and attend professional development events focused on trainees.

Congratulations to Josh on this achievement!