Program

Reuse of the Same Appendage Gene-Regulatory Network Across Animal Evolution

Antonia Monteiro, PhD
Professor, Department of Biological Sciences at the National University of Singapore

Prof Antónia Monteiro received her BSc from the University of Lisbon (1992) and her PhD from the University of Edinburgh (1997). She did postdoctoral work both at Harvard and Leiden Universities. She held faculty positions at the University at Buffalo, Yale University, and Yale-NUS College in Singapore. Currently she is a faculty member in the Department of Biological Sciences at the National University of Singapore (NUS). Her research interests focus on the emergence of novel complex traits in organisms, with a special focus on the evolution and development of color patterns.

Cell Mechanics and Dynamics in Development, Aging and Stress Adaptation

Rong Li, PhD
MBI Director, Mechanobiology Institute, National University of Singapore

Professor Rong Li came from Johns Hopkins University where she served as the Director of the Centre for Cell Dynamics in the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine. She was recruited to NUS in 2019 as the second Director of Mechanobiology Institute (MBI). 

Professor Li is a globally respected leader in the study of cellular dynamics and mechanics. Her interdisciplinary research integrates genetics, quantitative imaging, biophysical measurements, mathematical modelling, genomics and proteomics — to understand how eukaryotic cells transmit their genomes, adapt to the environment, and establish distinct organisation to perform specialised functions.