Lea GOENTORO

Department of Chemical Engineering
Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics
Princeton University
Princeton, NJ 08544
Phone: 609-258-7254
goentoro@princeton.edu

EDUCATION:

2001–2006 Princeton University Princeton, NJ
Ph.D. candidate in Chemical Engineering
1997-2001 University of Wisconsin-Madison Madison, WI
B.S. Chemical Engineering

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:

Ph.D thesis project (06/02-present):Analysis of dorsoventral patterning during Drosophila oogenesis
Advisors: Dr. Stanislav Y. Shvartsman (Department of Chemical Engineering and Lewis-Sigler Institute of Integrative Genomics, Princeton University). Dr. Trudi Schüpbach (Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University)
The project focuses on an Egfr-mediated patterning process taking place during the fruit fly development. The goals are to gain a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying the process and a better insight into the reasoning behind the choice of those mechanisms. The study combines modeling, genetic, and molecular approaches. We have recently developed a mechanistic model describing the formation of dorsoventral body axis, experimentally tested the predictions of the model, and used the results to distinguish two opposing mechanisms currently proposed to explain the patterning event.

Undergraduate research study (01/00-08/01): Preservation and stabilization of biological systems
Advisor: Dr. Juan J. dePablo (Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, UW-Madison.)
I participated in a project that aimed to improve the effectiveness of the cryoprotectant solution and the protocol used in freeze-drying Lactobacillus acidophilus.

RESEARCH INTERESTS:

I am interested in pattern formation during embryonic development, a phenomenon in which an initially uniform field of cells is transformed into several distinct groups of cells. Central to this process is an intricate network of intercellular signaling. My study focuses on the dorsoventral patterning during egg development in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. The goals are to gain a more quantitative understanding of the patterning mechanisms and beter insight into the reasonings behind the choice of those mechanisms. My work involves both modeling the system and experimentally testing the model predictions.

HONORS AND AWARDS:

Burroughs-Wellcome Fellowship in Biological Dynamics
Awarded through the Graduate Training Program in Biological Dynamics

Summer 2002 Herbert W. Rand and Frank R. Lilie Scholarships
Awarded by the Marine Biological Laboratory, Woods Hole, MA for a summer Physiology course

2000-2001 Hilldale Undergraduate/Faculty Research Fellowship
Awarded by the University of Wisconsin-Madison for a research proposal with Dr. Juan J. dePablo titled: "Systematic Investigation of Annealing on the Lyophilization of Biological Systems”