Rafael Gutierrez, UChicago undergraduate, joins the lab
Winter 2024
Emily Hendricks (DRSB) rotates in the lab
Gasser Elwasefi, UChicago undergraduate, joins the lab
Fall 2023
Hagerah Malik (MSTP-CON) joins the lab
Robin Mitchell (CON) and Vasudha Aher (DRSB) rotate in the lab
Annika unconditionally passes her qualifying exam
Summer 2023
Greaney et al., “Distinctive features of the central synaptic organization of Drosophila larval proprioceptors” is published in Frontiers in Neural Circuits
Dylan Cook (GGSB) rotates in the lab
Oscar Hernandez from Cal State Fullerton (MGCB REU program) and Michayla Hatcher from UChicago Laboratory Schools (Summer Link program) perform summer research in the lab
Spring 2023
Sam unconditionally passes their qualifying exams
Bianca Campagnari graduates from UChicago with a senior research honors thesis from the Heckscher Lab
Grace and Nicolas are both awarded DNUFO fellowships for summer research
Winter 2023
Grace is awarded the Quad Undergraduate Research Fellowship
Karen Velez (CMB) rotates in the lab
Fall 2022
Ellie is promoted to Associate Professor with tenure
Zarion unconditionally passes his qualifying exams
Nicolas Zerda and Grace Hu, UChicago undergraduates, join the lab
Sam is appointed to the Genetic Mechanisms & Evolution training grant
Summer 2022
2022 CSHL course: Drosophila Neurobiology: Gene, Circuits & Behavior. Ellie- Lecturer/Lab Coordinator; Jake and Deeptha- TAs
2022 UCSB KITP QBio summer research course: Neurophysics of Motion. Ellie- Instructor; Marie- TA
Sam Swank (DRSB) and Annika Sharma (CON) both join the lab
Zarion is re-appointed to the DevBio training grant
Bianca gets a NESSTP summer fellowship
Wang et al., “Sequential addition of neuronal stem cell temporal cohorts generates a feed-forward circuit in the Drosophila larval nerve cord” is published in eLife
Spring 2022
Julia Meng wins the CMB graduate program award for best PhD thesis
Jake is awarded an NRSA graduate fellowship
Sam Swank, DRSB graduate student rotation
Brandon Chew, CMB graduate student rotation
Yiqin Gao graduates from UChicago with a senior research honors thesis from the Heckscher Lab
Zarion Marshall publishes “The role of even-skipped in the Drosophila larval somatosensory circuit assembly” in eNeuro
Fall 2021
Julia Meng gets an honorable mention for the Elkins Award (best thesis) at Neurobiology of Drosophila, CSHL meeting
Summer 2021
Zarion Marshall is put on the Developmental Biology training grant
Bianca Campari is a DNUFO summer undergraduate researcher
Spring 2021
Marie Greaney and her collaborator Maxime Lehman win the best presentation prize at the 2021 CNRS-Chicago symposium
Julia Meng is accepted for a post-doc in David Lyons Lab at the University of Edinburgh
Yiqin Gao is accepted into the Neuroscience Honors Program
Juan Zuniga graduates from UChicago with a senior thesis in Neuroscience from the Heckscher Lab
Zarion Marshall, CON graduate student, (re)joins the lab
Conor Lee-Smith, CMB graduate student rotation
Talia Friedman, UChicago undergraduate, joins the lab
Winter 2021
Dr. Julia Meng, the first Heckscher Lab graduate student, successfully defends her thesis!
Marie Greaney gets an NRSA F31 Fellowship
Julia Meng publishes her review article “Development of Motor Circuits” in Current Topics in Developmental Biology Special Issue on Neural Development
Rio Salazar, CMB graduate student rotation
Anali Migueles, DRSB graduate student rotation
Fall 2020
Deeptha Vasudevan, postdoctoral researcher, joins the lab
Zarion Marshall, CON graduate student rotation
Summer 2020
Jake Henderson selected for the Developmental Biology Training Grant for a second year
Yiqin Gao awarded a BSCD Summer Research Fellowship
Juan Zuniga awarded a Metcalf Summer Fellowship
Yi-wen Wang, PhD leaves the lab for a job in Taiwan
Zarion Marshall leaves the lab to become a UChicago Committee on Neurobiology graduate student in the fall
Spring 2020
Meng et al., “Temporal transcription factors determine circuit membership by permanently altering motor neuron-to-muscle synaptic partnerships” is published in eLife
Hannah Carr graduates from UChicago having done a thesis in the Heckscher Lab and is accepted at UChicago Pritzker School of Medicine
Sean Corcoran, DRSB graduate student rotation (socially distanced)
Juan Zuniga and Yaa Asante, UChicago undergraduates, join the lab
Summer 2019
Jake Henderson, DRSB, joins the lab and is selected for the Developmental Biology Training Grant
Elise Paniel graduates with MS from University Paris, Diderot
2019 CSHL course: Drosophila Neurobiology: Gene, Circuits & Behavior. Ellie- Lecturer/Lab Coordinator; Marie and Yi-wen- TAs.
Hannah Carr awarded International REU Program Fellow
Omar Kassem, an undergraduate, joins the lab and is awarded an Odyssey Scholarship and Summer Fellowship
Yiqin Gao, an undergraduate, joins the lab and is awarded a Developmental Neurobiology Undergraduate Fellowship
Spring 2019
Marie Greaney gets an honorable mention for an NSF Graduate Research Fellowship
Alden Hererra, former undergraduate in the lab, graduates from UChicago
Anthony Osuma, CON graduate student rotation
Winter 2019
Jake Henderson, DRSB graduate student rotation
Rosteen Mansouri-Rad, CON graduate student rotation
Fall 2018
Heckscher Lab R01 officially begins!
Yi-wen Wang, postdoctoral researcher, joins the lab
Marie Greaney, CON, joins the lab and is awarded the Pritzker Neurobiology graduate fellowship
Elaine Kushkowski, DRSB graduate student rotation
Summer 2018
Annie Ullyot and Noah Brookes, UChicago undergraduates, join the lab
Alden Herrera and Hannah Carr get DNUFO summer fellowships
Wreden et al., “Temporal cohorts of lineage-related neurons perform analogous functions in distinct sensorimotor circuits” is published in Current Biology
Winter 2017
Julia Meng, CMB graduate student rotation
Roy Morgan, CMB graduate student rotation
Hirono et al., “The Hunchback temporal transcription factor establishes, but is not required to maintain, early-born neuronal identity” is published in Neural Development
Fall 2016
Harry Feng, DRSB graduate student rotation
Hannah Carr and Anthony DiGiovanni, UChicago undergraduates, join the Heckscher Lab
Sun and Heckscher 2016, “Using linear agarose channels to study Drosophila larval crawling behavior” is published in JoVE
Summer 2016
Wanhao Chi, GGSB graduate student rotation
Katie Bell, UChicago undergraduate joins the Heckscher Lab
Zarion Marshall joins the lab as a Technician
Clark et al., “Functional genetic screen to identify interneurons governing behaviorally distinct aspects of Drosophila larval motor programs” is published in G3
Winter 2016
Xiao Sun, DRSB graduate student rotation
Fall 2015
Chris Wreden, PhD joins Heckscher Lab as a Research Assistant
