Background Information
B.S., University of Maine at Orono; Ph.D., The University of Texas. Her research interests include organogensis in amphibian embryos. Dr. Drawbridge came to Rider in 1996.
Education
- 1993-96 Lecturer in Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ
- 1990-93 Postdoctoral Fellow, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ
- 1989 Ph.D., University of Texas, Austin, TX
- 1980 B.S. University of Maine, Orono, ME
Research Interests
Research in my laboratory focuses on understanding the cellular and molecular basis of cell migration during embryonic development. The migrating pronephric (kidney) duct primordium of the axolotl embryo - a salamander - is the model system we study. During development, cells of the kidney duct migrate along a stereotypical pathway from the anterior flank to the cloaca - the exit point for kidney filtrate and gametes. Guidance cues telling the duct when, where and in what direction to migrate reside in surrounding embryonic tissues. The lab is now directing its efforts toward determining the molecular identity of pronephric duct guidance cues and their receptors. Specific techniques students use in their research include: microsurgery, microinjection, RT-PCR, DNA sequencing, immunocytochemistry, in situ hybridization, northern and western blot analysis and protein purification.
Research Funding
- NSF RUI: "The role of Ret signaling in pronephric duct morphogenesis" ($319,000.00) 6/03-5/06
- Rider University 2003 Faculty Research Award 3/03
- NSF RUI: "The role of Ret signaling in nephric duct migration" ($272,000.00) 6/00-5/03
- New Jersey Commission on Cancer Research award: "The c-ret signaling system in kidney morphogenesis" ($87,000.00) 6/98-5/00
- NIH (AREA ): "The function of c-ret in nephric system morphogenesis" ($104,000.00) 6/97-5/00
Courses Taught
- Life Sciences: Inquiry Approach (BIO110)
- Principles of Biology (BIO-115)
- Hospital Internship (BIO-210)
- Developmental Biology (BIO-300)
- Advanced Cell and Molecular Biology Lab (BCH 331)
- Seminar in Cellular & Molecular Biology (BIO-400)
Selected Publications
- Drawbridge, J. 2003. The Color Purple: Endogenous alkaline phosphatase expression in sea urchin embryos as a system for experimental investigation of differentiation in an undergraduate developmental biology course. Int. J. Dev. Biol. 47:161-164.
- Morris, A.R., Drawbridge, J., and Steinberg, M.S. 2003. Axolotl pronephric duct migration requires epidermally-derived, laminin 1-containing extracellular matrix and the integrin receptor a6b1. Development 130:5601-5608.
- Drawbridge, J., Meighan, C.M., Lumpkins, R., and Kite, M.E. 2003. Pronephric duct extension in amphibian embryos: Migration and other mechanisms. Dev. Dynam. 226:1-11.
- Drawbridge, J., Meighan, C., and Mitchell, E. 2000. GDNF and GFRa-1 are components of the axolotl pronephric duct guidance system. Dev. Biol.228: 116-124.
- Drawbridge, J., and Steinberg, M. S. 2000. Elongation of axolotl tailbud embryos requires GPI-linked proteins and organizer-induced, active, ventral trunk endoderm cell rearrangements. Dev. Biol 223:27-37.
- Drawbridge, J. and Steinberg, M. S. 1996. Morphogenesis of the axolotl pronephric duct: a model system for the study of cell migration in vivo. Int. Jour. Dev. Biol. 40: 709-713.
- Drawbridge, J., Wolfe, A. E., Delgado, Y. L. and Steinberg, M. S. 1995. The epidermis is a source of directional information for the migrating pronephric duct in Ambystoma mexicanum embryos. Dev. Biol. 172:440-453.
- D. Hamill, J. Davis, J. Drawbridge and K. A. Suprenant. 1994. Polysome targeting to microtubules: Enrichment of specific mRNAs in a reconstituted microtubule preparation. J. Cell Biol. 127: 973-984.
- Thibaudeau, G., J. Drawbridge, A. W. Dollarhide, T. Haque and M. S. Steinberg. 1993. Three populations of migrating amphibian embryonic cells utilize different guidance cues. Dev. Biol. 159: 657-668.