Dr. Anna Czarkwiani
My research focuses on developmental and regeneration biology in unconventional animal models. During my PhD in the lab of Paola Oliveri (University College London) I compared the development and regeneration of the biomineralized skeleton in the brittle star Amphiura filiformis. During my postdoc I worked on interspecies conservation of regulatory regions driving the development of crucial embryonic structures and carried out a project exploring whole organ regeneration of the thymus in the Mexican axolotl.
With an independent fellowship from the TU Dresden (Maria Reiche Postdoctoral Fellowship hosted by Prof. Marius Ader) I now began to combine my expertise in biomineralization, gene regulatory network analysis and using the axolotl as a regenerative system to probe questions concerning our most ancient sense – the sense of gravity. I plan to use the axolotl to investigate the link between development, regeneration and degeneration of the biocrystal in the vertebrate inner ear using a combination of approaches to investigate this process at the structural, genetic, cellular and organismal level. This research will not only have implications for our basic understanding of gravity sensation but also for developing putative therapies for balance disorders.
Positions
| Since 2023 | Independent Scientist funded by the Maria Reiche postdoctoral fellowship (TU Dresden) hosted by Prof. Marius Ader at the Center for Regenerative Therapies TU Dresden (CRTD), Dresden, Germany |
| 2018 - 2023 | Postdoc in the group of Dr. Maximina Yun at CRTD, Dresden, Germany |
| 2013 - 2017 | Postgraduate teaching assistant at University College London (UCL), London, UK |
Education
|
2017 |
PhD in Developmental and Stem Cell Biology, (UCL), London, UK |
|
2012 |
MRes in Biosciences, Stem Cells and Development, UCL, London, UK |
|
2011 |
BSc in Human Genetics, UCL, London, UK |
Honors
| 2023 - 2025 | Maria Reiche Postdoctoral Fellowship, TU Dresden, Germany |
| 2022 | L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science award, Germany |
| 2021 | Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard Foundation grant, Germany |
| 2018 - 2021 | Humboldt Research Fellowship for Postdoctoral Researchers, Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Germany |
| 2012 - 2016 | Wellcome Trust 4-year PhD Studentship, The Wellcome Trust, UK |
Selected Publications:
- Kemmler, CL, Smolikova, J, Moran, HR, Mannion, BJ, Knapp, D, Lim, A, Czarkwiani, A, Hermosilla Aguayo, V, Rapp, V, Fitch, OE, Bötschi, S, Selleri, L, Farley, E, Braasch, I, Yun, MH, Visel, A, Osterwalder, M, Mosimann, C, Kozmik, Z, Burger, A (2023) Conserved enhancer logic controls the notochord expression of vertebrate Brachyury. Nature Communications. 14: 6594.
- Czarkwiani, A, Taylor J, Oliveri P (2022) Neurogenesis during brittle star arm regeneration is characterised by a conserved set of key developmental genes. Biology. 11(9):1360.
- Czarkwiani, A*, Dylus, DV*, Carballo, L, Oliveri, P (2021) FGF signalling plays similar roles in development and regeneration of the skeleton in the brittle star Amphiura filiformis. Development. 148(10): dev180760.
Dr. Anna Czarkwiani
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