Ana E. Berglind I b.s., may 2011, summa cum laude Ana Berglind was another of Linda Love’s recruits from the state community college system. The two met when Love was visiting Asheville–Buncombe Tech to promote BRITE. Born in Mazatlan, Mexico, Berglind came to United States at age 9 — first to California and then to Asheville when her father moved there for his job. She completed two associate degrees at Asheville–Buncombe Tech. She thrived at BRITE. Majoring in pharmaceutical sciences with a minor in chemistry, she graduated in May summa cum laude. In summer, she began working as a technician at the Novartis Institutes for Biomedical Research in Cambridge, Mass., and she is taking graduate courses at MIT. The job and the classes place her on a trajectory to enter a Ph.D. program in 2013. “BRITE gives us an environment comparable to corporate facilities,” Berglind said. “You can enter a job with confidence because you’re already familiar with the equipment. BRITE doesn’t just expose us to this environment, it forces us to be introduced to it.” In her research at BRITE, supervised by Associate Professor Gordon Ibeanu, Berglind examined a protein linked to Parkinson’s disease to determine whether it also was linked to Alzheimer’s. As with cancer, the cellular changes involved with development of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s occur via signaling pathways — sequences of chemical reactions involving proteins. The goal is to develop drugs to disrupt the process. “Research is asking a question,” she said. “And the answer can lead to a thousand more questions.”
Bronwyn Holliday I b.s., may 2010 Out in the workforce for more than a year now, Bronwyn Holliday is well embarked on her second career, this time as a plant biologist. After working as a chef for more than 20 years in Mississippi and western North Carolina, she enrolled at Asheville–Buncombe Tech and earned her associate degree. “Then I moved my whole family to Durham so I could go to BRITE,” Holliday said. “Dr. Jay Xie worked very closely with me during my senior year. I got a lot of help from my professors. The lab module gave us a distinct competitive advantage in the marketplace.” She graduated with a B.S. in pharmaceutical sciences in 2010 and was soon hired by GrassRoots Biotechnology, a small company in Durham. She is part of a team that manipulates genes in plant roots in an effort to develop plants that are stronger and better able to grow in harsh conditions. “She arrived ready to go,” said Doug Eisner, GrassRoots co-founder and chief operating officer. “She was tremendously skilled in the lab, and she had a deep understanding of the science behind the experiments. We got an exceptional student trained by an exceptional professor.”
Fall 2011 NCCU NOW
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