Lara earned her BS in Genetics from Iowa State University of Science & Technology. Her last appointment was with Bioforce Nanosciences as a research associate working in the field of nanoarray technology. She joined the Woodruff Lab in summer 2005 as the lab manager
People
Lab Manager
Graduate Student: Follicle Group
Beatriz Penalver Bernabe is a Ph.D. graduate student in the Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering at Northwestern University. She is a member of Dr. Lonnie Shea's and Dr. Linda Broadbelt’s research groups, and she has been collaborating with the Woodruff Laboratory and the Oncofertility Consortium since she joined the program. Beatriz recieved her B.S. in Chemical Engineering from the University of Murcia, Spain and her Masters in Chemical Engineering from the University of Massachussets, Amherst. She is very interesting in understanding Signaling Pathways in Cells through modelling, specially Folliculogenesis and Breast Cancer Developme
Graduate Student
Miranda is a graduate student in the IGP program at Northwestern. She graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2005 with a BS in Genetics, Cell Biology, and Development. She is currently studying the role of metal ions during meiotic maturation in mouse oocytes.
Postdoctoral Fellow
Lisa Campo-Engelstein is a postdoctoral fellow in bioethics. She received a B.A. from Middlebury College, with a double major in philosophy and pre-med, as well as a minor in sociology. She received a M.A. and Ph.D. from Michigan State University in philosophy with a focus on bioethics, feminist theory, and social/political philosophy. The title of her dissertation was "Contraceptive Responsibility: Trust, Gender, and Ideology." She is now examining ethical issues surrounding Oncofertility.
Marilia joined the Woodruff Lab in July 2010. She graduated in Biology from University of Coimbra, Portugal. After took a Master Degree in Cellular and Molecular Biology, she was selected to enroll the Doctoral Programme in Experimental Biology and Biomedicine (BEB), organized by the Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology (CNC), University of Coimbra, Portugal (http://beb.cnbc.pt/default.asp). She is currently studying the dynamic of the ovary, particularly the mechanisms controlling follicular movement.
Financial Specialist
Barbara joined the lab in March 2006 as the U54 program coordinator. She is responsible for the administration of all facets of the Center for Reproductive Research. Prior to this, she worked at Evansont Northwestern Healthcare as a Research Coordinator and Practice Manager in the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery.
Postdoctoral Fellow
Francesca Duncan joined the Woodruff Lab as a post-doctoral fellow in October 2009. She received her PhD in Cell and Molecular Biology from the University of Pennsylvania in 2006. Her dissertation focused on understanding how polarity is generated during meiosis in the mouse egg. During a short post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Pennsylvania, Francesca developed a mouse model of Preimplantation Genetic Testing to determine the effect of the blastomere biopsy procedure on global patterns of gene expression in the resulting blastocysts. She also used live-cell imaging techniques to compare meiosis in oocytes from young and old mice to dissect the molecular mechanisms contributing to the maternal age-associated increase in aneuploidy in mouse eggs. Francesca is driven by translational research that has direct clinical applications, so she is excited to join Team Follicle in the endeavor to obtain healthy, fertilizable eggs by culturing follicles of various stages in three-dimensional alginate-based matrices. She is also excited to contribute to myoncofertility.org and to participate in teaching at the Oncofertility Saturday Academy.
Research Coordinator
Satavisha Dutta, is the research coordinator of the Oncofertility consortium. She works with Fruma and helps faculty and research staff with grant submissions, and provides miscellaneous pre and post award grant administration. Previously, she was the clinical coordinator for the Cornea clinic at Kellogg Eye Center, University of Michigan, where she managed multiple federal and industry sponsored clinical research. She has a masters degree in Molecular and Cellular Biology and has worked at Pfizer, Inc., in different capacities from a bench scientist to project coordinator.
Director of Education Programs, Institute of Women's Health Research
Megan Faurot, MEd, is the Director of Education Programs for the Institute for Women’s Health Research. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Biology and Secondary Education from Kalamazoo College and her Master’s of Science Education from Illinois Institute of Technology. From 2002 – 2008 she worked at Young Women’s Leadership Charter School of Chicago where she was the Biology Teacher and Science Department Director. It was at YWLCS, where she began her efforts to initiate and develop science partnerships with community outreach organizations and academic institutions in Chicago to provide engaging science learning experiences to empower her students. In August 2008, she joined the Institute for Women’s Health Research to continue and expand her efforts to develop science education programs to inspire and prepare more girls and women to successfully pursue their academic and career goals.
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Postdoctoral Fellow
Huge Galdones is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow who joined the Woodruff Lab in March 2009. He received his B.Sc. (Physiology) and Ph.D. (Pharmacology and Therapeutics) at McGill University (Montreal, QC, Canada). With a particular focus on teratology and toxicology, his doctoral thesis examined the molecular mechanisms underlying vitamin A-induced birth defects. His present work focuses on (1) understanding how aberrant exposure of bisphenol A affects follicle ploidy and (2) determining how ovarian rigidity disrupts the signals required for proper follicle development and maturation.
