Jan Bilbao Del Valle

From talking about CRISPR, to suffering the “bipolar” personality of Novosphingobium aromaticivorans, to lunch conversations about eye surgery, hugging penguins, coffee obsession, fishing, and fiery lab hot takes, this summer was unforgettable thanks to my time in Jason Peters’s lab at UW–Madison.

My project focused on using a CRISPR transposon system called VcCAST to study and engineer N. aromaticivorans, a bacterium with incredible potential for metabolic engineering. I used this system to identify neutral intergenic regions for transposon insertion and explored the potential of Mobile-CRISPRi to create a genome-wide gene knockdown library. Along the way, I learned everything from bacterial conjugation to colony PCR, while also discovering how much persistence and patience it takes to make science work.

What truly made this experience special, however, was the lab’s supportive and collaborative environment. My mentors were always ready to guide me, and my lab mates turned every challenge into an opportunity to learn and laugh. Those moments, both at the bench and outside the lab, made this summer not just productive but genuinely fun.

This experience solidified my passion for research and my goal of pursuing a PhD in microbiology. I am leaving UW–Madison not only with new technical skills but with a stronger sense of curiosity, confidence, and community.

Science, I’ve learned, is more than experiments, it’s the people you share it with.