Jennifer Liang

Research

I earned my Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where I majored in Molecular Biology and Mathematics. My PhD research was done in the laboratory of Dr. Stuart Kornfeld at Washington University in St. Louis and focused on how newly synthesized proteins are targeted to the right place in the cell. As a post-doctoral fellow in the laboratory of Dr. Marnie Halpern at the Carnegie Institution of Science, I moved to studying cell biology in the context of a whole organism, the developing zebrafish embryo. I have continued to use the zebrafish system in my own laboratory, first at Case Western Reserve University and now at the University of Minnesota Duluth.

The research in my laboratory uses zebrafish as a model system to uncover the mechanisms that control development of the central nervous system. We focus on three interrelated projects: (1) identifying the genes, signaling pathways, and cellular mechanisms that control anterior neurulation (2) characterizing how initiating circadian rhythms are initiated during development, (3) identifying signals and mechanisms that generate left-right brain asymmetry. At the University of Minnesota-Duluth, I am a member of the Integrated Biosciences Program, a University of Minnesota-wide, multi-disciplinary M.S. and Ph.D. granting program. Five M.S. students and three Ph.D. students have completed their degrees in my laboratory.

I have a long-term commitment to giving students hands-on experience with experimental biology and to encouraging underrepresented minority and female students to pursue a career in science. Since joining the faculty of the Biology Department at the University of Minnesota Duluth in 2008, I have become a mentor for the Pathways to Advanced Degrees in the Life Sciences, Undergraduate Research Opportunities, McNair, and Biology Undergraduate Research in Science and Technology Programs. During my time as an Independent Investigator, I have had 48 undergraduate students join my laboratory, including 36 women and 12 students belonging to underrepresented groups. Many of these students have presented at national or international meetings and earned authorship on peer-reviewed publications.