My current research interests involve developmental variation in animals.
Specifically, I am interested in morphological variation in vertebrates and the
differences in the underlying molecular mechanisms which produce those variations. In my
research, I use a group of fishes known as characids, many of which are small fishes with
clearly observable variations in morphology and coloration. By comparing the
embryogeneses and larval growth patterns between species, alterations to their respective
developmental programs can be observed. These observations can be used to generate
hypotheses which can be tested at the cellular and/or molecular levels. Currently, I am
focused on development in the red-eye tetra Moenkhausia sanctaefilomenae, notably the
development of the jaw elements and their variations from those of the developmental
model zebrafish Danio rerio.

Articles

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Psf2 Plays Important Roles in Normal Eye Development in Xenopus laevis (with Kimberly J. Perry, Lisa Fukui, Erica L. Malloch, Jason Weaver, and Jonathan J. Henry), Molecular Vision (2008)
 

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Embryonic Expression of Pre-Initiation DNA Replication Factors in Xenopus laevis (with Jonathan J. Henry), Gene Expression Patterns (2004)

We examined the expression of various DNA replication factors, including: cdc45, the factors of the...

 

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Molecular Profiling: Gene Expression Reveals Discrete Phases of Lens Induction and Development in Xenopus laevis (with Yimin Tian, Amy K. Garlisch, Maria E. Carinato, Matthew B. Elkins, Adam D. Wolfe, Jonathan J. Schaefer, Kimberly J. Perry, and Jonathan J. Henry), Molecular Vision (2004)
 

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Characterizing Gene Expression during Lens Formation in Xenopus laevis: Evaluating the Model for Embryonic Lens Induction (with Jonathan J. Henry, Maria E. Carinato, Jonathan J. Schaefer, Adam D. Wolfe, Brian E. Walter, Kimberly J. Perry, and Tricia N. Elbl), Developmental Dynamics (2002)

Few directed searches have been undertaken to identify the genes involved in vertebrate lens formation....

 

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Xenopus laevis Gelatinase B (Xmmp-9): Development, Regeneration, and Wound Healing (with Maria E. Carinato and Jonathan J. Henry), Developmental Dynamics (2000)

It has been argued that matrix metalloproteinases play important roles in cellular differentiation and regeneration...