Kara Murphy| For the Erie Times-News

Ashley Russell was stuck in traffic on Interstate 295 outsideBaltimore on a November day in 2019. She had finished her day as a post-doctoral research fellow at John Hopkins University and was talking to her parents in Erie on the phone to pass the time during the long drive home.

"It was just a soul-sucking hour-long commute each day," she said. "So I'd usually call my parents, and we'd talk."

2020: Behrend to serve as research partner

That day, her father had news he couldn't wait to share: A $26 million medical research center was coming to Erie. It meant up to 200 good jobs for the region, including two new faculty positions at Penn State Behrend. As Magee-WomenResearch Institute-Erie academic partner for the project, Behrend would create biomedical engineering and biochemistry/molecular biology academic programs.

Russell wanted to return to her hometown but didn't think her career would ever allow it.

"There was nowhere to do biomedical research in Erie," she said. "So I thought there was no way I'd ever live in Erie again."

Now there was not only an opportunity, but it was at Behrend, where she'd earned her undergraduate degree.

2019: $26 million medical research facility coming to Erie

She applied at her alma materand, in August, Russell returned, this timeto stay. Her title at Behrend is now assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biology.

"Dr. Russell's research is a perfect fit for MWRI-Erie, and for Behrend's increased focus on biochemistry and molecular biology," said Ivor Knight, associate dean for research and graduate studies at Behrend.

Along with teaching, Russell and Jeremiah Keyes the other faculty member brought on at Behrend will lead studies in Behrend's new microbiology labs. Their work will support imaging and cell-growth testing related to MWRI-Erie research.

The larger of the two labs, a $1 million, 2,700-square-foot space in the Advanced Manufacturing and Innovation Center, will become the heart of an advanced imaging facility at Behrend and a resource for start-up companies and products that further Magee Women Research Institute-Erie's studies.

A second, smaller lab will be located in the Otto Behrend Science Building.

The pandemic delayed the new labs' completion, but Russell is hoping to start her first study at Behrend by mid-March. Her first study is looking for biomarkers of chronic stress during pregnancy that might indicate adverse pregnancy outcomes.

"A lot of this work will be done in collaboration with students, which is exciting because undergrad students bring a lot of energy and excitement to the table," she said. "We'll be training them to conduct experiments and how to collect and interpret data."

Knight said he believes Russell's studies will reach beyond Behrend's labs.

"Her study of chronic stress during pregnancy and the properties and behaviors of extracellular vesicles, particularly during the body's immune response, could, over the long term, influence the direction of research for MWRI-Erie, including clinical trials," he said.

Russell is excited about being part of the team building the program from the ground up at Behrend and what MWRI-Erie means for the future of scientific research in Erie.

Community leaders are hopeful as well.

Officials estimated in 2019 when announcing the project that $15 million in new federal research money will flow into Erie during the first five years and that research spending could reach $50 million by the tenth year.

"I believe this is just the beginning that this will open up a lot of opportunities to promote Erie as a biomedical hub for companies," Russell said.

And her commute now? It's 8 minutes.

Kara Murphy is a freelance writer in Erie and publisher of Macaroni Kid Erie. Contact her at murphy_kara@yahoo.com.

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Brain gain: Medical researcher finds her way back to Erie thanks to new research facility - GoErie.com