Regenerative Biology - Dr. Jennifer Morgan

We are honored to have Dr. Jennifer Morgan joining us for today’s episode! Dr. Morgan is a Senior Scientist and Director of the Eugene Bell Center for Regenerative Biology and Tissue Engineering at the Marine Biological Laboratory (MBL) in Woods Hole, MA.

She received her Ph.D. in Neurobiology from Duke University, where she worked on mechanisms of neurotransmission. She then carried out her postdoctoral studies on membrane trafficking in the Cell Biology Department at Yale University. In 2007, Morgan joined the Section of Molecular Cell and Developmental Biology at The University of Texas at Austin as an Assistant Professor where she expanded her research program to include spinal cord injury and regeneration mechanisms.

Dr. Morgan received her first research grant from the Morton Cure Paralysis Fund, which eventually led to a Research Project Grant (R01) from the National Institutes of Health that is now in its 11th year of funding. While at UT-Austin, Dr. Morgan received several prestigious awards, including a University of Texas Regents’ Outstanding Teaching Award (2011) and the Janett Trubatch Career Development Award from the Society for Neuroscience (2011).

In 2012, Dr. Morgan was recruited to the MBL’s Bell Center to expand her research program in regenerative biology. She continues to study the mechanisms of neurotransmission under both normal conditions, as well as with spinal injury and neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s disease. Dr. Morgan is currently one of the co-directors of the NIH-funded courses at the MBL called “Frontiers in Stem Cells and Regeneration”, and she is a standing member on the NIH Neuronal Communications Study Section. Throughout her career, Dr. Morgan has dedicated her efforts to mentoring students and postdocs and advancing diversity and inclusion in the STEM sciences, and she is actively involved in the MBL Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Committee, which she chaired for the last 3 years.

Marine Biological Laboratory: https://www.mbl.edu/

Many thanks to Dr. Morgan for her work and for being our guest on today’s episode! This production is a collaborative effort of volunteers working to create a quality audio and visual experience around the subject of spinal cord injury. A special shout out of appreciation to Clientek for providing studio space and top-notch recording equipment. Most importantly, thank YOU for being part of the Spinal Cast audience!

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