PhD Candidate Education Education: B.S. Plant and Microbial Biology, University of Minnesota – Twin Cities Research Research Areas: Molecular Genetics Genomics and Bioinformatics Developmental Biology Research Interests: I study the impact that development and tissue organization have on the spread of new mutations within and between generations. By sequencing new insertions of a maize transposon across time and tissue types, we gain previously unattainable resolution into mutations ranging from extremely rare (1 in 12,000) to extremely abundant (fixed). This data can be used to learn about 1. how tissue type affects the distribution of mutational abundances, 2. How germlines may be organized as a mechanism to avoid genetic bottlenecks leading to gametes, and 3. How tissue type affects the insertion site preference of the maize Mutator transposon. Labs (please indicate whose lab you are a member of): Brad Nelms Selected Publications Selected Publications: Scherer, J., Hinczewski, M., & Nelms, B. (2025). Quantitative and sensitive sequencing of somatic mutations induced by a maize transposon. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 122(32). https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.2426650122 Awards, Honors and Recognitions Of note: Kirby and Jan Alton Graduate Fellow
