Jessica Feldman

Underlying the complexity of the human body is the ability of our cells to adopt diverse forms and functions. This process of cell differentiation requires cells to polarize, translating developmental information into cell-type specific arrangements of intracellular structures. The major goal of the research in my laboratory is to understand how cells build these functional intracellular patterns during development. In particular, we are currently focused on understanding the molecules and mechanisms that build microtubules at cell-type specific locations and the polarity cues that guide this patterning, both of which are essential for normal development and cell function. We study these processes in living animals because the chemical, mechanical, and ever-changing environments experienced by cells in intact organisms are not readily replicated ex vivo. Thus, we take innovative approaches in the model organism C. elegans using novel genetic and proteomic tools, high resolution live imaging, and embryological manipulations.