Jaqueline Villanueva Govea

Pronouns: she/her

Current Research Project: I first got involved in research as a BSURF (now SURF) fellow in 2023, and I’ve continued in the Perfect Lab studying the fungal pathogen Cryptococcus neoformans. My project looks at the genetic components of this organism using techniques like PCR, HiFi reactions, and CRISPR-Cas9. Even though I’m not majoring in biology, I’ve found this work to be interesting, and it has taught me a lot and allowed me to grow a lot as a researcher with the support of my mentor, Dr. Jennifer Tenor, and PI, Dr. John Perfect. At the same time, I’ve explored research in sociology and education through classes and activity involvements too, but not on a scale like my work with C.neoformans.

How she got involved with research: I first became involved in research at Duke through the URS Program, then called BSURF and now known as SURF. I applied during my freshman year and spent the summer after my first year conducting research in my current lab, where I have continued since. I’m grateful for that opportunity because it gave me my first real exposure to research, also skills needed to be able to develop skills both within the lab and outside, and connected me to a supportive community I hadn’t imagined before Duke and that grew more.