The Squirrell Laboratory
Faculty > Jayne M. Squirrell
Jayne M. Squirrell
Assistant Scientist, Laboratory for Optical and Computational Instrumentation (LOCI) through Molecular Biology
jsquirre@wisc.edu
Squirrell Laboratory Home Page
Aligned Research Focus
Basic stem cell science
Research Description
I am a research scientist with investigator status at the UW Laboratory for Optical and Computational Instrumentation (LOCI).
I have a substantial cell and developmental biology background with significant experience in live cell imaging, particularly of embryonic development. I would like to extend that expertise to include the analysis of stem cell dynamics.
I will be developing procedures for, and conducting experiments using, multidimensional multiphoton fluorescence imaging of undifferentiated and differentiated mouse embryonic stem cells to learn about the dynamic behavior of these cell types.
I also plan to investigate the applicability of combined spectral and lifetime imaging (SLIM) of endogenous fluorescent metabolites (such as NADH and FAD) to serve as potential metabolic "signatures" for differentiation state of the embryonic stem cells. This work would be performed in collaboration with the Lyons and Kamp labs, and will build on current research at LOCI investigating metabolic changes in cancer.
Our long-term goal is to apply these potentially early indicators of differentiation state to study the roles of cell division and polarity in embryonic stem cell differentiation and how those roles are similar or different to those found during development in model organisms, such as C. elegans.
Selected References
Bembenek JN, Richie CT, Squirrell JM, Campbell JM, Eliceiri KW, Poteryaev D, Spang A, Golden A, White JG. Cortical granule exocytosis in C. elegans is regulated by cell cycle components including separase. Development. 34(21):3837-48. 2007.
Squirrell JM, Eggers ZT, Luedke N, Saari B, Grimson A, Lyons GE, Anderson P, White JG.
CAR-1, a protein that localizes with the mRNA decapping component DCAP-1, is required for cytokinesis and ER organization in Caenorhabditis elegans embryos. Mol Biol Cell. 17(1):336-44. 2006.
Skala MC, Squirrell JM, Vrotsos KM, Eickhoff JC, Gendron-Fitzpatrick A, Eliceiri KW, Ramanujam N. Multiphoton microscopy of endogenous fluorescence differentiates normal, precancerous, and cancerous squamous epithelial tissues. Cancer Res. 65(4):1180-6. 2005.
Poteryaev D, Squirrell JM, Campbell JM, White JG, Spang A. Involvement of the actin cytoskeleton and homotypic membrane fusion in ER dynamics in Caenorhabditis elegans.
Mol Biol Cell. 16(5):2139-53. 2005.
Squirrell JM, White JG. Using multiphoton excitation to explore the murky depths of developing embryos. Methods Mol Biol. 254:113-36. 2004.