Breaking Through Winter 2022

Hannah Lust, Ph.D., is not the first student to have“boomeranged” back to the MDI Biological Laboratory.Lucky for us, she’s unlikely to be the last.

Lust came to MDIBL as an INBRE fellow from the University of Maine Farmington. It was here that her passion for science was ignited. “I was fully immersed; completely surrounded by peers and mentors who were just as enthusiastic and excited as I was.” Lust says. “It sounds cliché, but that’s when I fell in love with science.” Her 10 weeks in Salisbury Cove were so formative that she changed her plans of becoming a medical doctor to becoming a scientist. In 2021 she received her Ph.D. in Microbiology and Immunology from Dartmouth College.

When the opportunity to come back to MDIBL as an employee arose last fall, Lust jumped at the chance. Her new role will see her heavily involved in the federally funded All About Arsenic SEPA (Science Education Partnership Award) program. The data-literacy program trains educators and students throughout Maine and

New Hampshire in real-world research skills. Participants collect and test private well water samples for the presence of arsenic, analyze data and present their findings, along with mitigation recommendations, to the community.

It’s a change for Lust, who spent her doctoral years focused on T cell immunology, but she’s eager for the challenge. “During graduate school I realized I really enjoy helping other students fall in love with science,” she explains. “I feel privileged to be introducing them to science and instilling a sense of curiosity and confidence.” Lust is excited to make science more accessible for Maine students and help them see the impact it, and they, can have. She has traveled full circle back to MDIBL and Maine, and who knows — maybe she will be the spark that ignites another young scientist’s passion.