 Helen Willsey, PhD
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| Title(s) | Postdoctoral Scholar, Psychiatry |
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| School | School of Medicine |
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| Phone | 415-476-7730 |
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| vCard | Download vCard |
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 Biography | Duke University | BS | 2009 | Biology | | Yale University | PhD | 2015 | Genetics | | University of California, Berkeley | Postdoc | 2016 | MCB |
| UC Berkeley | 2016 | | 1st Place, Postdoc Poster, GGD Retreat | | International Xenopus Meeting | 2016 | | 1st Place, Postdoc Poster | | Yale University | 2016 | | 1st Place, Beauty in Science Image Competition | | Yale University | 2015 | | Carolyn Slayman Outstanding Genetics Thesis Prize | | CSHL, Xenopus Course | 2015 | | 1st Place, Image Competition | | Yale University | 2013 | | Best Research in Progress Seminar, Genetics Department | | Yale University | 2011 | | Best Poster Award, Genetics Department Retreat | | Duke University | 2009 | | Summa cum laude | | Duke University | 2009 | | Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society | | Duke University | 2009 | | Edward C. Horn Memorial Prize for Excellence in Biology |
Overview Helen is interested in understanding how Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)-associated genes function during neurodevelopment. Despite the genetic heterogeneity of ASD, several lines of evidence suggest that ASD-associated genes share common molecular underpinnings. To identify these common mechanisms, Helen leverages CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing with the diploid frog model Xenopus tropicalis. Due to the speed of frog development, Helen can rapidly study the loss of function phenotype of many ASD genes in parallel. Specifically, she injects Cas9 protein and a single guide RNA (sgRNA) against an ASD gene at the two-cell embryo stage, generating animals in which exactly half the body (separated by the midline) is mutant, allowing for direct comparison of mutant and control cells in the same animal. Helen uses a variety of techniques to identify ‘convergent phenotypes,’ including RNAseq, in situ hybridization, and immunostaining. In this way, Helen's work is aimed at identifying phenotypes most relevant to ASD pathology to provide a path forward for understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying ASD.
Bibliographic
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Willsey HR, Walentek P, Exner CRT, Xu Y, Lane AB, Harland RM, Heald R, Santama N. Katanin-like protein Katnal2 is required for ciliogenesis and brain development in Xenopus embryos. Dev Biol. 2018 10 15; 442(2):276-287. PMID: 30096282.
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Willsey AJ, Morris MT, Wang S, Willsey HR, Sun N, Teerikorpi N, Baum TB, Cagney G, Bender KJ, Desai TA, Srivastava D, Davis GW, Doudna J, Chang E, Sohal V, Lowenstein DH, Li H, Agard D, Keiser MJ, Shoichet B, von Zastrow M, Mucke L, Finkbeiner S, Gan L, Sestan N, Ward ME, Huttenhain R, Nowakowski TJ, Bellen HJ, Frank LM, Khokha MK, Lifton RP, Kampmann M, Ideker T, State MW, Krogan NJ. The Psychiatric Cell Map Initiative: A Convergent Systems Biological Approach to Illuminating Key Molecular Pathways in Neuropsychiatric Disorders. Cell. 2018 Jul 26; 174(3):505-520. PMID: 30053424.
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Willsey HR, Zheng X, Carlos Pastor-Pareja J, Willsey AJ, Beachy PA, Xu T. Localized JNK signaling regulates organ size during development. Elife. 2016 03 14; 5. PMID: 26974344; PMCID: PMC4848088.
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Maynard JC, Pham T, Zheng T, Jockheck-Clark A, Rankin HB, Newgard CB, Spana EP, Nicchitta CV. Gp93, the Drosophila GRP94 ortholog, is required for gut epithelial homeostasis and nutrient assimilation-coupled growth control. Dev Biol. 2010 Mar 15; 339(2):295-306. PMID: 20044986; PMCID: PMC2830396.
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