PhD student
Begüm Bali completed her studies at Istanbul University in Turkiye. Her undergraduate degree was in Biology, and her graduate studies focused on fundamental and industrial microbiology. During the Master’s program, she worked in a microbiology laboratory as a student laboratory assistant. The goal of her Master’s thesis was to isolate, characterize, and determine the diversity of bacteria obtained from a cave.
After graduation, Begüm began her career as a medical consultant and a copywriter. During this time, she had the opportunity to research, write, and create content and present information on various health components, including vitamins and minerals, that benefit human health. Recently, she decided to return to the scientific world and become involved in research. As a result, she joined the National Science Centre OPUS project entitled “Research on Epigenetic Memory Mechanisms Based on the Example of the Response of Human Immune Cells to Vitamin D”.
In the WELCOME2 group, Begüm will focus on investigating the impact of vitamin D supplementation on immune competence. She will support the analysis of samples arriving to the laboratory, using basic techniques such as human cell isolation, library preparation and analysis and integration of next-generation sequencing data. She will also be responsible for interpreting the overall results and contributing to a better understanding of how vitamin D influences immune function on a molecular level.