Andrew J. Modzelewski, Ph.D
Assistant Professor of Molecular Biology, Biomedical Sciences (UPenn School of Veterinary Medicine)
The Modzelewski lab (The ModzLab) studies early mammalian embryonic development with a specific focus on the role of retrotransposon reactivation, a well-known but poorly understood phenomenon that occurs in all mammalian preimplantation embryos. We discovered that retrotransposon reactivation is not only intentional in the embryo, but it is essential. Our goals is to apply what we learn from normal retrotransposon biology in the embryo to the unintentional retrotransposon reactivation that frequently occurs during epigenetic breakdown associated with aging, autoimmunity, neurodegeneration and cancer.
Keywords: Retrotransposons, noncoding RNA, development