Sofia is excited to begin working in the PCD lab and to begin examining the effects of varying sugar concentration on anthocyanin production in lace plants. She is currently in her third year at Dalhousie as a Marine Biology major and French minor. Sofia took an interest in Dr. Gunawardena’s research after hearing about her work with cancer cells and lace plants. The unique and exciting topic caught her eye, as she had always had a love for plants and would love to connect it with medical research. In the summer of 2021, Sofia received the Sarah Lawson Scholarship to identify and quantify anthocyanin species in lace plants under stress conditions induced by sugar. Outside of the lab, Sofia can normally be found at the library reading, swimming or going for hikes around Halifax. In the future, Sofia hopes to conduct her honors research in the Gunawardena lab and to eventually pursue graduate studies in biology or marine biology.