VCU news

By Joan Tupponce

Communicating technical research in an understandable way isn’t always easy, as Ava Beaudin discovered during her summer internship at BioPlatinum Technologies in Richmond.

“The art of communicating is the most important thing I have learned. You can have a lot of success in the lab, but if you don’t know how to communicate it to the public, it doesn’t go anywhere,” said Beaudin, a junior in Virginia Commonwealth University’s Honors College who is majoring in chemistry in the College of Humanities and Sciences and minoring in both psychology and pre-medicine studies. “I have gained confidence in communicating complex scientific concepts and findings in a digestible manner, which will help immensely in patient care when I become a doctor.”

Beaudin, who worked at the VCU Massey Cancer Center in a research assistant position before her internship, received support from VCU’s Internship Funding Program, which offers scholarships that help students defray the expenses associated with summer internships.

Beaudin learned about platinum therapeutics for ovarian and pancreatic cancers at BioPlatinum, which was founded by Nicholas Farrell, Ph.D., a distinguished VCU chemistry professor who retired last year. She worked in the lab, helping to grow cell cultures, conduct cytotoxicity assays and learn about ongoing research in the field. She also helped review current literature as it applies to the lab’s work with biomarkers, antibodies and the application of platinum as an anticancer agent.

“I enjoy the hands-on portion of the work in the lab,” she said, adding she has learned about the very precise nature of scientific research, as well as the importance of making mistakes and learning from them.

She finds that working on a small team is a great fit for her, noting that she values having an experienced mentor to provide specialized guidance, and enjoys being “able to bounce ideas off of someone.”

During her internship, Beaudin had the chance to see several research presentations and network when she attended the 2024 Virginia Drug Discovery Consortium. 

“I saw a lot of recent work in drug development and had the opportunity to see the work professionals and graduate students were doing,” she said. “Our team got to meet other people in the field that might be interested in collaborating with us.”

Beaudin’s internship ended when she returned to school, but she continued to work with the lab.

“I’ve been able to learn all sorts of lab skills, and I’m learning the process of writing grants proposals, publications and posters,” she said. She has found that the once intimidating field of research has become more accessible to her, and she hopes to continue learning skills which will later be useful in her career.

Beaudin’s interest in the medical field started from a young age, with early exposure to psychology, and continued in high school as she took chemistry courses where she “had a phenomenal chemistry teacher.” She came to VCU on a provost scholarship, drawn to the university in part “because there is an excellent hospital downtown and several clinical opportunities around the city.” She confirmed her interest in medicine through neuroscience research in a Rhetoric course and by shadowing physicians at VCU Health in surgeries and clinics.

“All of the doctors and residents I have observed at VCU have been wonderful mentors, and I look up to them a lot,” she said.

Beaudin’s goal is to become a physician, and she said the medical profession has the perfect mixture of things she wants in a career: critical thinking, hands-on work, collaboration, direct patient care, mentorship, and challenge. She was recently accepted into the Guaranteed Admissions Program for the VCU School of Medicine and looks forward to continuing her education at VCU.