UBC Okanagan undergrads map plant enzymes to enable more sustainable drug production
Undergraduates at UBC Okanagan, including Regan Nguyen and Yurika Oda, are working in Prof. Thu‑Thuy Dang’s lab to identify plant enzymes involved in pharmaceutical compound synthesis. The effort aims to produce high‑value drugs more sustainably; students perform advanced lab work (PCR, DNA/RNA extractions, LC‑MS) and can progress from volunteer roles to paid Work Study and summer research funding.
Led by Prof. Thu‑Thuy Dang, UBC Okanagan undergraduates are mapping the biocatalysts plants use to assemble complex pharmaceutical molecules. Students began with tasks such as cultivating 50 tobacco pots per week to support production and advanced to molecular techniques: polymerase chain reaction (PCR), DNA/RNA extraction using liquid nitrogen, preparing agar media and running liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry. One student isolated an enzyme linked to painkiller synthesis. The lab explicitly offers entry paths from second‑year volunteer positions to paid Work Study roles, summer funding opportunities and the option to undertake an honours thesis.