Pew Scholar of the Month is a Wellesley College Alum
Brown University assistant professor who graduated from Wellesley is looking at the differences between guys and girls--the genetic ones.
An award-winning researcher has ties back to the Wellesley community: the Pew Health Group’s Scholar of the Month is a Wellesley College alum, Brown University assistant professor of biology Erica Larschan. A profile on the Pew Charitable Trusts website explains her passion for genetics and a little about her work. As you may recall from Biology 101, female organisms have two X chromosomes, while males have an X and a Y--which is what defines gender. Studying fruit flies, Pew reports that Larschan's team discovered how the protein complex MSL—or male-specific lethal, so-called because it keeps male organisms alive—which helps male fruit flies compensate for the lack of a second X chromosome. Read more about the MSL discovery on …
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