J. Craig Venter Institute

JCVI is pleased to offer a 2021 Internship Program, which has been modified due to COVID-19 concerns and restricted capacity. We will still be offering a very competitive and rewarding internship experience that will provide this year’s interns with hands on, immersive research and mentoring experiences with our genomics experts. Here are the criteria and process for applying to the JCVI 2021 Internship Program: All applicants must be 18 years or older upon start of... the internship program and must reside in the United States. Internships will begin on June 2, 2021 and run for approximately 10-15 weeks (length depends on the specific internship). Applicants must have a 3.0/B average (as evidenced by a school transcript) and have proof of full time enrollment in school. Applicants should have a strong interest in a science career or be majoring in science. All applications must submit a 1,000 word statement of interest. See more

JCVI scientists, led by Norberto Gonzalez-Juarbe, Ph.D., have discovered that Influenza A virus is found in heart tissue after it has been cleared from the lungs in mouse models. Live virus present during convalescence disrupts cell signaling in the heart, suggesting major alterations to cardiac function. The team has outlined possible therapeutic strategies to improve health outcomes. Given these findings, additional research is warranted on the effects of other pulmonary pandemic viruses on cardiac health. This is even more relevant given the current widespread observations of adverse cardiac events in COVID-19 patients. https://www.jcvi.org//influenza-virus-discovered-heart-mus

A persistent challenge is the emergence of viruses that can lead to pandemics, like SARS-CoV-2. Scientists at JCVI and UMSOM have developed a system using synthetic biology to rapidly clone, assemble and engineer virus genomes to enable understanding of their biology and evolution, thus facilitating the development of better therapeutics and vaccines. This technology is currently being applied to SARS-CoV-2 to study emerging variants of concern. To learn more about how JCVI researchers are helping in the fight against COVID-19, click the link below. https://www.jcvi.org/research/coronavirus-research #pandemic #genome #vaccine #covid19

Research shows the human microbiome plays a role in human health and disease. It has also been observed that an individual’s microbiome changes over time due to disease, diet, development, travel, and other environmental factors. However, it has not been known whether or not microbes acquired at birth or in early childhood can stay with someone throughout life. Establishing this directly is not possible as the field of research isn’t old enough to have samples from individuals spanning a lifetime. By using data from a large twins study we have been able to extrapolate this by looking for microbes with rare genetic variants. Our research suggests that some microbial species acquired at birth or in early childhood may stay with us for life. #microbiome https://www.jcvi.org//microbial-species-initially-colonize