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Kendall Lough, PhD

CGIBD Postdoctoral Fellow

Department of Pathology and Lab Medicine

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Talk title

Exciting contact: gut-brain circuits in early physiology and behavior

Dr. Kendall Lough is a CGIBD Basic Science Fellow with a background in cell and developmental biology in various tissue systems, including the embryonic epidermal, oral, and gastrointestinal epithelia. His research focuses on understanding how molecular pathways drive cell identity and behavior, tissue morphogenesis, and organ function. He has made research discoveries at the intersection of cell fate specification and epidermal differentiation, the genetics of palate formation, and the developmental origins of the gut-brain axis. Currently, he seeks to define the mechanisms governing early gut-brain communication and its contribution to animal physiology and disease. He is particularly interested in the interface between sensory enteroendocrine cells and their neural or glial partners and defining the molecular and cellular mechanisms that coordinate communication between cells in the gut and brain.

The ´óÏó´«Ã½ SOM’s Rising Stars Program’s main goal is to broaden participation among faculty members in the basic sciences. This professional development workshop series provides training to postdoctoral fellows to help them excel during the faculty interview process by exposing admitted fellows to the same components that they will experience during the faculty job interview process. This includes mock job talks, chalk talks, and multiple one-on-one faculty interviews. Participants will also attend workshops on the faculty environment and negotiating hiring packages. This program is sponsored by the Vice Dean for Research at ´óÏó´«Ã½ SOM, the Office of Faculty Affairs and Leadership Development, and Howard Hughes Medical Institute Gilliam Awards.

Please note, applications to the Rising Stars Program are neither an application for employment at ´óÏó´«Ã½ nor an interview for a faculty position. Learn more about the program here.