Our study on zebrafish embryo centrosomes is online!

by Heidi Hehnly in


Our new study at Current Biology is online! Lindsay Rathbun and Abrar Aljiboury identified that in the zebrafish embryo mitotic centrosomes scale with cell size and are asymmetric in size! We had a great collaboration with the Bembenek Lab at Univ of Michigan along with his student Bai to also examine that this phenomenon is consistent in C. elegans. We had additional great contributions from undergrads to postbacs Nicole Hall and Julie Manikas. Finally we wouldn’t have been able to do any of it if the Amack Lab at SUNY Upstate didn’t introduce us to zebrafish and how awesome they are!

Check out the sweet video of zebrafish embryonic centrosomes:

Microtubules (EMTB-3xGFP) and centrosomes (Centrin-GFP)

Microtubules (EMTB-3xGFP) and centrosomes (Centrin-GFP)

You can check out the study here: Link to PDF.


ASCB Washington DC 2019

by Heidi Hehnly in ,


Lindsay Rathbun (graduate student), Jessica O’Connell (graduate student), Nikhila Krishnan (graduate student), and Julie Manikas (postbac) all did a great job mixing with scientists and presenting their work at ASCB! Julie Manikas gave a talk to a packed room on cilia formation in the developing zebrafish embryo and the rest of the lab gave poster presentations on centrosome signaling, membrane trafficking, forces required to create a tissue, and cell division during embryogenesis. I even had a guest presenter to present my poster on PLK1 activity at the centrosome, Hehnly Lab Alumni Erica Colicino!

Erica Colicino (Hehnly Lab Alum) presenting on cenexin and PLK1

Erica Colicino (Hehnly Lab Alum) presenting on cenexin and PLK1

Julie Manikas presenting on Cilia formation in the developing embryo

Julie Manikas presenting on Cilia formation in the developing embryo

Jessica O’Connel presenting on the role of the cytokinesis bridge in Rosette formation.

Jessica O’Connel presenting on the role of the cytokinesis bridge in Rosette formation.

Lindsay Rathbun presenting her work on the role of the Cytokinetic bridge in lumen formation.

Lindsay Rathbun presenting her work on the role of the Cytokinetic bridge in lumen formation.

Nikhila presenting on the role of endosomes and the centrosome during cell division.

Nikhila presenting on the role of endosomes and the centrosome during cell division.

We also enjoyed a great dinner with collaborators and old friends! It was awesome to hang out with Julia Riley from the Castaneda lab, Hui-Fang Hung and Ana Vertii, old friends from the Doxsey Lab, and Colleen McDowell (Wisconsin).

Julia Riley, Erica Colicino, Heidi Hehnly, and Julie Manikas

Julia Riley, Erica Colicino, Heidi Hehnly, and Julie Manikas

Heidi and Hui-Fang Hung

Heidi and Hui-Fang Hung

Lab Dinner

Lab Dinner

Ana and Heidi

Ana and Heidi

Heidi and Colleen

Heidi and Colleen

Fun in DC

Fun in DC

Bart and Mike at the Botanical Gardens

Bart and Mike at the Botanical Gardens


Mitosis Microsymposium with the Bergstralh Lab!

by Heidi Hehnly in ,


We had a great time traveling to Rochester (University of Rochester) where we attended a micro symposium with the Bergstralh lab.  It was great hearing about everyone's science, eating delicious donuts from Glazed and Confused, and Ramen at Butapub!

A sweet post from the Bergstralh Lab and also evidence of the delicious donuts!

A sweet post from the Bergstralh Lab and also evidence of the delicious donuts!