We’re very happy to welcome Abby Benkert and Joshua Wesalo to the CSC team, both 2013 graduates of Franklin & Marshall College. Abby and Josh are exceptional young scientists and will spend one year working on independent research.
Abby Benkert is the 2013-2014 Avery Fellow. She honed her talents working in the lab of Dr. Robert N. Jinks, Associate Professor of Biology at Franklin & Marshall College, where she performed functional protein studies of numerous CSC disorders. As the 2nd Avery Fellow, Abby will focus on the effective treatment of congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) by managing various clinical trials and developing laboratory assays for the monitoring of key compounds.
Joshua Wesalo is no stranger to the necessary rigor of independent research. Since his sophomore year at F&M, Josh has worked on the synthesis and purification of the ganglioside GM3 in the lab of Dr. Kenneth Hess, Professor of Chemistry. During his research fellowship, Josh will continue his work on the synthesis of GM3 with the ultimate goal of using this compound to treat GM3 synthase deficiency, a neurologically devastating disorder.
We are committed to training the clinician-scientists of the future and could not be more delighted to have Abby and Josh join our team!
Pictured (L-R): Joshua Wesalo, Kenneth Hess, Abby Benkert, and Robert Jinks