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Brittney Otero UFGI PHD STUDENT SPOTLIGHT- WOMEN IN SCIENCE DAY

By Rosie Kereston

Brittney Otero has always had a passion for learning how the world works. Finding those unexpected connections in scientific data and recognizing their implications inspired her from a young age to pursue a career in a STEM field. Even though she initially wanted a MD, her time at the University of Florida encouraged her to help others from a slightly different perspective.

“Whether it is linking one disease to another, or connecting previously distant molecular mechanisms, it is always exciting to put smaller pieces of the much bigger puzzle together,” she said.

During the third year of her undergraduate degree at the University of Florida, Otero learned how to really break down scientific material from one of Dr. Laura Ranum’s Post-Docs. She also realized then that pursing a PhD was the next step in her academic career.

“I enjoyed working with a small group of people, answering important questions, and constantly learning.”

A graphical abstract of Otero's recently published work.

Otero’s recent published work focuses on identifying dysregulated pathways found within Myotonic Dystrophy (DM), a microsatellite disease of the central nervous system characterized by progressive muscle wasting and weakness. Rather than having its origin in neurodegeneration, she explained that the disease implicates a neuroinflammatory response.

“The field is exploding! New repeat diseases are being discovered continuously and it will be interesting to explore how their mechanisms are similar and dissimilar,” she stated. “Our research establishes how large the CTG repeats are in the patient brain… and ultimately, we can find what the best options for patient therapeutics will be.”

Otero’s work explores changes across the largest cohort of DM patient brain samples ever published. This large sample size allows for enhanced development of models to study the disease and how to possibly see disease improvement in the future through clinical trials and beyond.

As a woman and a minority in a STEM field, Otero notes that there are still challenges faced by those like her. She explains that while there have been improvements to inclusivity over the years, women lag behind in representation in academia and there is definitely still room for growth.

“Though things are better than they were for previous generations, the field still has a lot of improving to do,” she expressed. “It is difficult to continue down a path that so few of your fellow female role models have been successful in. It can get extremely discouraging sometimes when the majority of those who hold faculty positions are those of the opposite sex.”

A recent challenge for Otero was getting maternity leave as a graduate student. Currently, UF does not offer paid leave for graduate students and unpaid leave is only for 6 weeks.

“Luckily my PI, Eric Wang, was quite accommodating, but I think this is a very large issue for women in science. Better parental support is needed to keep women in the field long term.”

A photo of a virtual baby shower held by Otero's lab for her newborn this past year.

In the future, Otero stated she hopes to stay in academia and after graduation, transition into the Gut-Brain axis field.

“The connection between the gut and the brain from a neurodegeneration and neuropsychiatric perspective is quite intriguing and I can’t wait to jump in!”

Otero has a bright future ahead of her. When asked to share a useful piece of academic advice that has proved useful to her, she suggests, “follow the data. Don’t feel tied down to certain methods or get upset when results differ from your expectations. Simply adjust and follow what the science is telling you.” ∎

Brittney Otero currently works in Dr. Eric Wang’s lab in the UF Center for Neurogenetics. Photos courtesy of Brittney Otero.