Cade Harkner
He/Him
I am gay and I am a PhD candidate in chemistry studying RNA.//
I am currently a chemistry PhD candidate at the University of Michigan in the Keane group where I investigate the roles RNA structure and RNA-protein interactions have on microRNA biogenesis.
I am originally from semi-rural, fairly conservative Wisconsin raised by a working-class family (my father, who passed when I was 9, with a bachelor’s degree and my mom without a college degree). I had attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison under the FASTrack program, where I had worked under Dr. Aaron Hoskins. It was this undergrad research work that made me fall in love with RNA and protein biochemistry. I graduated with a B.S. in chemistry with honors, and joined the chemistry program at the University of Michigan where I joined Dr. Sarah Keane’s lab. Since moving to Michigan, I have become an NIH Chemistry-Biology Interface T32 fellow/trainee, and have helped establish an LGBTQ+ graduate student group, PRiSM, in the chemistry department.
Once I obtain my PhD, I plan to move to postdoctoral work and hope to become a tenure track professor in academia working in RNA biology or structure determination of large RNAs/RNPs