Georgia Burton is making the most of her opportunities at the University of Maine at Fort Kent (UMFK) as she pursues her ultimate dream of earning a doctorate in physical therapy.
The Westmoreland, Jamaica native is in her senior year at UMFK, where she expects to complete her Bachelor of Science in Biology (biology/medical concentration) in May 2026. In addition to her academics, where she currently has a 3.74 GPA, Burton serves as president of the International Student Organization and is the Student Athletic Advisory Committee’s Track and Field Women’s representative. Her events in track and field include discus, shot put, hammer, and javelin.
For ten weeks this past summer, Burton was one of 25 students from among Maine’s public and private colleges and universities selected to participate in the Maine IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence (INBRE) Summer Research Fellowship program at the Mount Desert Island Biological Laboratory (MDIBL) in Bar Harbor.
Maine INBRE is funded by an Institutional Development Award (IDeA) from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National Institutes of Health.
The summer fellowship program provides undergraduate students with a mentored, hands-on biomedical research experience at one of the participating network institutions as part of broader Maine INBRE’s goal of building a biomedical workforce and making Maine more competitive for research grants. Students work in the laboratory of an investigator on an independent project designed by the student and their mentor. Students can develop laboratory techniques in molecular biology, physiology, and bioinformatics. Projects focus on a research question in functional genomics and use a variety of comparative models such as zebrafish, fruit flies, axolotl, and C. elegans.
Burton learned of the Fellowship opportunity from Samantha Beaulieu, the natural sciences laboratory manager at UMFK. In that capacity, Beaulieu also serves as the principal investigator for the grant that supports UMFK’s participation in the Maine INBRE.
“I promote these opportunities here on campus, so students are aware and encouraged to apply,” said Beaulieu. “I help match students with science-specific opportunities, sometimes involving individual faculty members who have individually applied for their own grants through various external funding sources.”
Dustin Updike, Ph.D., is the director of the Developmental Research Project program at MDIBL. It was under his preceptorship and within his laboratory where Burton conducted her research.
“We were incredibly fortunate to have Georgia join our lab this summer,” said Updike. “Georgia arrived well-prepared and eager to learn. Her project focused on identifying the gene products that keep a novel histone deacetylase (HDAC) complex turned off in the germline—the cells that give rise to sperm and eggs. HDAC complexes are known to compact DNA; however, little is understood about this newly identified complex beyond its essential role in late mammalian embryonic development.
“Instead of working with mammals directly, Georgia studied the equivalent complex in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. These tiny roundworms have long served as powerful models for human genetics, as they share roughly the same number of genes as humans, with many nearly identical to their human counterparts, but have a short generation time of four days,” Updike explained.
Burton’s work was truly a tour de force. Over the course of the summer, she carefully examined more than a thousand petri dishes—each containing over a thousand nematodes. Under the microscope, she searched for the rare one or two animals on each plate in which the HDAC complex became activated. Through this meticulous effort, she identified animals with candidate genes that may be responsible for keeping the complex turned off.
“It was an immense amount of work and, at the same time, a crash course in genetics. What Georgia accomplished in the ten weeks was nothing short of remarkable. She seemed to be having fun at it, too,” Updike added.
If Updike was impressed with Burton’s eagerness to learn, she certainly speaks effusively of her MDIBL summer experience.
“This past summer, I worked in Dr. Updike’s lab, where I used Caenorhabditis elegans to study transgenerational genetic inheritance. My gene of interest was saeg-2, which is a fascinating gene with a human counterpart known as Deoxynucleotidyl transferase Terminal Interacting Protein 1 (DNTTIP 1), a protein-coding gene,” Burton noted.
“DNTTIP1 is involved in several cellular processes, including DNA synthesis, gene expression regulation, and cell cycle control, making it an important link between basic research and potential human health applications.
“I also had the opportunity to perform EMS mutagenesis for the first time, a challenging but exciting technique, which led to promising results. I even conducted DNA extractions that will be sent for full genome sequencing, an important step toward uncovering new insights into this gene’s role,” Burton mentioned.
If all work and no play make for a dull life, Burton and her lab colleagues made the best of their time after hours, as well.
Ready access to Acadia National Park afforded many after-hours hikes. And while the Atlantic proved to be a bit too cold, there were a few inland lakes that offered some invigorating swims and nighttime bonfires.
Burton’s classmates represented a cross-section of Maine’s higher education institutions, as well as states as varied as North Carolina and Oregon, and foreign countries near (Canada) and far (Swaziland). Among their commonalities for ten weeks this past summer was shared genetic research and an appreciation of the natural beauty of Maine.
“My being awarded an INBRE Fellowship was an incredible honor, and it was a privilege to spend the summer surrounded by brilliant scientists, inspiring mentors, and a community passionate about discovery,” said Burton.
“This was an amazing opportunity to gain valuable laboratory experience and use state-of-the-art equipment, beyond what is typically available at UMFK.
“I was able to conduct DNA research, hear from a variety of researchers and guest speakers, and gain a lot of insight from my talks with Ph.D. students who participated in the program. I came away with a greater understanding of what to expect for my graduate degree program, and I had the opportunity to make some wonderful connections.
“I am deeply grateful to Dr. Updike and the entire lab staff for their guidance, patience, and encouragement throughout my journey,” she added.
For more information on the Biology program at UMFK, visit the UMFK website.