Adam Lunceford was doing his first rotation as a graduate student in biochemistry at UCLA when his preparations for presenting his research were interrupted by the birth of his third child. Some of his student colleagues went with him to the hospital to see his wife, Aurelia, and even brought presents. By the time he gets his PhD—he hopes this June—children numbers four, five, and six will also be on hand to help him celebrate.

For Adam, then, family has been intertwined with graduate studies in ways that most graduate students haven't experienced—and might not even want to imagine. When Adam returns to his family apartment in UCLA student housing, he helps "getting the kids into pajamas, giving them a drink of water before they go to bed, and tucking them in with hugs and kisses." He also reads bedtime stories, some of which have been passed along by his graduate adviser, Catherine Clarke, along with toys and DVDs her own two daughters have outgrown. Professor Clarke "has the best books," Adam says.

She also has an area of research that Adam has found fascinating since his first visit to Los Angeles during the application and recruitment process. Working with "this little nematode"—a tiny worm to non-scientists—Professor Clarke is looking at how diet influences aging. In the case of C. elegans, lunch is bacteria smeared on an agarplate. Clarke and a colleague discovered that "if you feed them a particular type of bacteria that lacks a molecule called coenzyme Q, these worms live significantly longer," Adam says.

What wasn't clear was why. It's rather well-established that restricting food intake can prolong life. Perhaps, Adam thought, C. elegans didn't like the taste of the bacteria lacking coenzyme Q—and so ate less, resulting in longer life. Working with postdoctoral fellow, Ryoichi Saiki, as the senior member of the research team, Adam monitored consumption. It turned out that appetite didn't vary by bacteria. Next, the two noted that the bacteria lacking coenzyme Q "can't respire aerobically, can't process oxygen the usual way," Adam says, but instead "rely on fermentative types of metabolism." Choosing another bacteria—one that had coenzyme Q but didn't have normal respiration—they got informative results: "Sure enough," Adam says, "when we fed worms these fermentative bacteria, the worms had a significant lifespan extension, almost as dramatic as the coenzyme Q group." Moreover, the worms not only lived longer, they remained active and healthy.

"What's really exciting," Adam says, "is that it's difficult to alter genetic pathways in people, but you can alter the environment." His research might be a start toward finding "things you can eat that might have an influence on how you age," he says. The results are being published now in a series of papers and in Adam's dissertation; he expects to finish his PhD in June.

How has Adam managed all this while being the father to a large family? "He makes the most of his time in the lab by being very hard working," his adviser, Professor Clarke, says, "and he has a knack for getting quite a bit done despite having somewhat limited hours. He makes a sincere effort to do his very best at whatever it is he puts his mind to accomplish—and this has enabled him to excel in all aspects of our graduate program."

Of course, time isn’t the only demand a family makes. Adam’s financial support as a graduate student researcher and low-cost student housing provide only the basics of a balanced family budget. Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints have also helped. For example, a woman who works for an investment firm that often holds luncheons and dinners may get together the leftover food and "drop it off with us, and we’ll have dinner for two or three days," he says. His parents provided their old car when Adam’s died en route to UCLA.

Nevertheless, "it’s not been an easy road," Adam acknowledges, so when he told Aurelia about his plans for the next career step, it’s understandable that "she had to think about it for awhile." Adam came to UCLA from a job at Abbott Laboratories in Chicago with a nice salary: "Life was pretty plush." He took an academic leave to pursue his PhD and expand his career options, but he had planned to return. Since 2003, however, there have been layoffs, not only at Abbott, but all over the biotech industry. As a newly minted PhD, Adam thought, he would be "a little fish in a big ocean, and it would be pretty tough swimming."

In addition, he’s always been interested in "how you take science from the bench and generate a product or service that really impacts human life." Being a patent attorney would help him use his doctoral expertise to help translate scientific discoveries into products. As a result, Adam proposed seeking a law degree, adding three years onto his time in school.

After considering all this, Aurelia told him, "I never pictured you as an attorney, but if that’s want you want to pursue, I support you." No wonder Adam "can’t say enough about how I love and appreciate her." In fact, to his mind, she has a share in his achievements: "I wish I could put her name right next to mine on the diploma," he says, "because she’s been beside me 100%."

Published in Spring 2008, Graduate Quarterly