Selma Gulyurtlu, PostDoctoral Research Fellow

I am a cell biologist working in drug discovery, with a focus on cardiovascular disease. That means I help develop modern medicine by testing substances in cells and tissue models before the prospect of clinical trials.

It was unexpected for me that I ended up in this field. I initially wanted to be a medical doctor and I loved chemistry and mathematics in high school. I studied biomedical sciences and always loved the practical classes. Then I was offered a scholarship to do my own laboratory project and that’s what made me switch from the idea of medicine to become a scientist. I enjoyed the autonomy, flexibility and the challenge of working to solve a puzzle.

I’ve always wanted to be translational, so being at the interface of drug discovery made that niche for me. I found out that I don’t need to be a medical doctor to help people’s health.

I start my day at 4am preparing my daughters' food for the day and my lunch. I get going early so I can travel to work by 7am. I often start with getting my laboratory experiments set up, then catch up with paperwork over a coffee. If my day allows, I use my lunch break to go for a run or have lunch with my colleagues. 

After I complete my experiments, any analyses and meetings for the day, I head back home in time to pick up my daughters from school and switch back to family time.

While I was doing my PhD I took part in a lot of organised activities with the general public, schools activities and career events. That inspired me to design my own engagement events, particularly an art gallery of microscopy images. 

When I started my first post-doctoral position, I helped put together a public engagement team that developed resources and activities for audiences from school students to the elderly.

I am a big advocate for engaging with the public about what we do – it’s so important because they are key stakeholders in our research.

Making a lasting impact: I want to help future generations irradicate cardiovascular disease. I know first-hand from my own family history how detrimental this kind of disease can be, and I want to help shape modern medicine so that we can influence health in the least invasive way possible.