Meet Your Fellow Companion: Jayalakshmi Govindan

摘要

As a doctoral student, jayalakshmi Govindan (SX 2013) is investigating how ze-brafish regenerate their fin skeletons in the hopes of one day making this type of bone regeneration possible for humans. I received my master of science and master of philosophy degrees in microbiology in India. Currently, I am a fourth-year graduate student in the Department of Biological Sciences at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. I am pursuing a PhD in the field of molecular biology. In my lab, we study the role of Cx43 (a gap junction protein that facilitates direct cell-cell communication) during bone regeneration and skeletogenesis. We use zebra-fish as a model system for its remarkable ability to regenerate several of its body parts, including the tail fin. Mutations in the cx43 gene results in reduced tail fin length in zebrafish. Interestingly, mutations in human CX43 also result in defective skeletal morphogenesis, revealing that the function of Cx43 is highly conserved. We are interested in understanding how defects in gap junctional communication lead to defects in bone growth and identifying the underlying genetic and molecular pathways.