High-school biology sows passion for genetics

When doctoral graduate Zanetta Toomata first learnt about DNA in a biology class at her Hawaiian high school, something clicked. Now she is graduating from Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland with a PhD in Medicine.

“This little thing that you can’t even see with the naked eye carries the blueprint to life –your genetics. I remember being so fascinated that something so small could influence so much about who we are.”

Her doctoral dissertation reflects that early wonder and reveals her passion for translating science into healthcare, as it explores how the unique genetics of Māori and Pacific peoples could be harnessed to improve diabetes care.

After high school at Kamehameha Schools Kapālama, Zanetta moved to the US to study veterinary science at Purdue University in Indiana but, after two years, she knew it wasn’t a good fit.

“I had to ask myself, ‘Do I truly want to do this?’ and that’s when it hit me, I didn’t. I didn’t want to be a veterinarian anymore.”

At the same time, a genetics course she was taking reignited her curiosity about DNA. Learning about genetic inheritance, Mendel’s laws with pea plants, and the rules that shape life at its smallest level fascinated her in a way that veterinary work hadn’t. Within a week she changed her major.

Zanetta wanted to be closer to family, so she later moved to Auckland, where her father had grown up in Mangere, and started a genetics degree at Massey University in Albany.

She hit her stride in the small, focused classes of around 15 people, rather than a couple of hundred at the US university.

“I just loved it… eventually I was awarded as the Best Undergraduate in Genetics.”

However, she was 19 when she started and admits to a degree of ‘imposter syndrome.’

“Building my confidence as a person and as a researcher has been huge. I was quite shy. At the awards ceremony, I remember the look of confusion on my professor’s face as she called my name and didn't even know who I was. I was that shy and so young.”

She then transferred to Waipapa Taumata Rau, University of Auckland studying in Professor Peter Shepherd’s lab and went on to earn a Bachelor of Biomedical Science with first class honours. Then she began doctoral study supervised by Professor Rinki Murphy, Dr Ofa Dewes, and Associate Professor Phillip Wilcox, where she channelled her skills into precision medicine.

The support of her supervisors helped her build confidence and resilience, especially when research threw curve balls, and strengthened her passion for improving healthcare.

Research that matters
Zanetta’s work explores how genetic variants more prevalent in Māori and Pacific peoples could save patients from unnecessary tests, enable earlier intervention, and improve treatment response.

“The genetics of Māori and Pacific are truly unique… as more genetic data is generated, we’re going to find more about how that can be useful in diabetes medicine.

“You can potentially help reduce inequalities in diabetes care and outcomes.”

Zanetta’s findings have been published in leading journals, and she has presented at national and international conferences, both about her scientific results and Indigenous methodology and governance. While limited genomic data for Māori and Pacific peoples remains a challenge, she views it as an opportunity to build resources that better serve these communities.

“If you compare it on a global scale, what we have is treasure, but there’s also room to grow so we can have the same level of confidence in our results as other populations.”

Zanetta’s biggest curveball came after securing a postdoctoral offer at Harvard Medical School with Associate Professor Miriam Udler, a thought leader in type 2 diabetes genetics.

“I moved to Boston excited and ready to start my new role, but extensive delays in my examination process, combined with the federal research funding cuts in the US, affected my position. It was one of the most stressful times of my life.”

Finally in November, her PhD was successfully defended, and Dr Udler renewed her offer, inviting Zanetta to return to Boston to continue her postdoctoral research in precision diabetes at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, an opportunity she will now pursue.

As a Samoan-Hawaiian young woman in genetics (with Japanese and Scottish heritage), Zanetta is conscious of being one of the few – and is committed to changing that.

“It feels like I’m the only young Pacific woman in this medical genetics space right now, and I want that to change! I want there to be more like me.

“I go to student events and talk to high-school kids about research and genetics as a career. I tell other Pacific girls, ‘You can do this work, if you’re interested and you want it – you can do it.’”

Now she is one of 870 students graduating in person or in absentia from the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences this year, of whom 67 have gained doctorates.

Along the way, Zanetta has won a Pacific Health Research PhD Scholarship (HRC NZ), Toloa Tertiary Scholarship and multiple summer and travel scholarships.

Longer term, her heart is set on returning to Aotearoa.

“I hope to one day come back – perhaps become a lecturer or have my own lab in precision medicine.”