The Hehnly Lab wants to extend our congratulations to Yiling Lan (Ph.D. candidate) and Yan Wu (Postdoctoral Researcher) for their excellent presentations at the BioInspired Institute Symposium last Friday.
Both presented posters showcasing their ongoing work in developmental cell biology.
Yiling also gave an oral presentation in the Development and Disease focus group, highlighting emerging evidence on how the centrosome—particularly the potential interaction between Cenexin and Pericentrin—contributes to early embryogenesis.
Yan presented her progress on the role of cell division in Kupffer’s Vesicle (KV) morphogenesis, with a focus on how the KV disengages from the enveloping layer (EVL).
We are delighted to welcome Albert Adhya, a Chemistry Ph.D. candidate jointly mentored in my group and Jimmy Hougland’s lab, to our research team. Albert is bringing a unique interdisciplinary perspective at the interface of chemical biology and developmental cell biology.
His work in the lab will focus on two complementary projects:
Defining the role of the Golgi apparatus during Kupffer’s Vesicle (KV) morphogenesis, with an emphasis on how secretory trafficking contributes to early lumen formation and epithelial remodeling.
Investigating Ghrelin and the acylation enzyme GOAT in early vertebrate development, an emerging axis with intriguing implications for metabolic signaling during embryogenesis.
We’re excited to have him on board and look forward to the insights his interdisciplinary approach will bring to these questions.
Welcome, Albert!
The Department of Biology and Hehnly Lab were delighted to host Dr. Dorothy Lerit from Emory University for a seminar on October 24, 2025. Dr. Lerit, an expert in centrosome and RNA biology, presented her talk titled “The RNA-binding protein Orb2 regulates brain growth in Drosophila.”
