Lab Members

Principal Investigator:

Suzanne Moenter, PhD

Fred J. Karsch Collegiate Professor of Physiology

Professor, Molecular & Integrative Physiology

Professor, Obstetrics & Gynecology

Professor, Internal Medicine

Research Professor, Reproductive Sciences Program

smoenter@umich.edu

Lab members:

Laura Burger, PhD

Lab Associate

PhD, University of Illinois

llburger@umich.edu

I recognized my interest in Reproductive/Endocrine Physiology as an undergraduate while taking a course to fulfill a biology requirement for my Biochemistry degree. As far as Biochemisty was concerned I never looked back. Though often called the lab "Molecular Biologist" I see myself primarily as a reproductive physiologist with a strong emphasis in animal models. In the Moenter lab, I'm working with prenatally androgenized female mice as model for Polycycstic Ovarian Syndrome. I do admit a passion for PCR; in my opinion real time PCR is almost as close to instant gratification as you can get in science. My other passion is coffee... I admit I do judge people based on their coffee habits, though I've discovered I do like many people in spite of their need for sweetened flavored creamers with extra sugar.

Tony DeFazio, PhD

Assistant Research Scientist

PhD, University of Southern California

defazio@umich.edu

I am primarily a patch clamp electrophysiologist. I design and execute experiments to understand the functional roles of ligand- and voltage-gated ion channels in the context of the hypothalamic-pituitary-gonadal axis. I also like bicycles (road, cyclocross, and mountain; singlespeed and geared). To relax, I run the Potowatomi or listen to early Psychic TV. I also hold the tremendous responsibility of brewing coffee under the watchful eyes of the Lab Coffee Director, Dr. Burger.

Elizabeth Wagenmaker, MS

Lab Associate

MS, University of MInnesota, Twin Cities

ewagenma@umich.edu

My area of interest is how stress affects reproduction. Specifically, I’m investigating the effects of psychosocial stress on various aspects of the female reproductive axis such as the pre-ovulatory LH surge and ovulation. Surprisingly, little evidence exists these types of stressors, by themselves, interfere with the ovarian cycle in females. Given the pervasive nature of psychosocial stress in today’s society, it is important to understand how this type of stress may impact reproductive fitness.

Graduate students:

Amanda Gibson, BS

BS, Hope College

gibsonag@umich.edu

I graduated from Hope College in 2018 with majors in Psychology and Spanish and minors in Neuroscience and Chemistry. After helping to lead a variety of research projects, I came to value the strength of approaching challenging questions from multiple angles. Broadly, I am interested in how experiences early in life alter physiology leading to lasting impacts on one's life trajectory. Within the lab, my project has centered on understanding how prenatal androgen exposure affects stress reactivity and upstream regulators of gonadotropin-releasing hormone neurons.

Chrystian Phillips

BS, University of Michigan

chrystip@umich.edu

I graduated with my B.S. from the University of Michigan in 2018 with a major in Neuroscience and a minor in Physics. I spent my post-baccalaureate years as a lab manager where I cultivated my passion for elucidating neural control circuits underlying physiological outputs. In the Moenter Lab, I continue this passion by investigating how the brain controls reproduction. My dissertation project aims to investigate how glial cells, particularly astrocytes, contribute to the regulation of the neuronal network behind reproductive function, with emphasis on gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) and kisspeptin/neurokinin B/dynorphin (KNDy) neurons.

Joseph "Rudi" Starrett, BS

BS, University of Massachusetts

jstarret@umich.edu

I am interested in how estradiol modulation of ion channels and synapses can impact neural circuit dynamics and output. Gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) secretion represents the final output of a neuronal network that regulates reproductive function, including gonadal steroidogenesis. Estradiol modulates GnRH secretion, forming an endocrine feedback loop between the gonads and the brain. However, GnRH neurons do not detectably express the necessary receptor for estradiol feedback. Currently I am examining the electrophysiology of kisspeptin neurons in the anteroventral periventricular nucleus (AVPV). These neurons are activated by estradiol and are critical for the GnRH/LH surge — the neuroendocrine signal that triggers ovulation. I am focused on building our understanding of how estradiol increases the activity of AVPV kisspeptin neurons and also how synaptic and peptidergic signals originating from the AVPV are regulated by estradiol feedback.

Jenn Jaime-Alvarez

BS, University of Colorado Denver

jjaimeal@umich.edu

I graduated from the University of Colorado Denver in 2019 with a major in Psychology and a minor in Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience. During my time there I explored the sex differences in the circuits that control voluntary exercise behavior, before joining two labs at the Anschutz Medical Campus. There, I worked on two different projects, exploring pituitary adenomas and gonadal function. Broadly, I am interested in how the brain controls reproductive function and how prenatal androgen exposure alters this.

Postdoctoral Fellows

Xi Chen, PhD

University of Michigan

xichenum@umich.edu

During my PhD, I studied calcium signaling in the heart using imaging and electrophysiologic methods. For my postdoc, I wanted to adapt these methodologies to the study of neural systems. For decades, neuroendocrinologists have assumed that action potential firing rate is correlated with hormone release. In reality, this has only been measured in the magnocellular system. I'm combining dual electrophysiologic recordings for neuronal activity with fast-scan cyclic voltammetry to measure GnRH release to quantify this for the reproductive neuroendocrine system, as well as whether or not this relationship is modified by sex or steroid feedback.