#MondayMotivation - Julia Gauberg

This week, Julia Gauberg, PhD student from Senatore Lab is our #MondayMotivation! Her ambition, strength and perseverence motivates all of us to continue striving for our goals.

Read her story below:

"I completed my Honours BSc and MSc degrees at York University, where I studied the barrier properties of the skin of aquatic animals. For my PhD in the Senatore lab, I am studying an animal that lacks a nervous system but is still able to perform complex movements and behaviours. I received the best thesis awards for both my BSc and MSc research projects and I have been funded by NSERC for my BSc, MSc and PhD degrees.

One of my favourite aspects of research is collaborating with other scientists. I have collaborated with labs in Canada, Australia and France, and I am currently collaborating on a project with a research group in New York. The work from my collaboration with the Franklin Lab in Australia was recently published in the Journal of Experimental Biology. We discovered that a deadly fungus, which is devastating frog populations worldwide, alters the barrier properties of the skin by affecting proteins called “tight junction proteins”. When a frog is infected by this fungus, its skin becomes very leaky, making it hard for the skin to act as a barrier to the external environment. This paper was recently shortlisted for the 2019 JEB Outstanding Paper Prize.

In addition to doing research, I love bringing biology into the community. I currently volunteer for the Canadian Association for Girls in Science where I help host science-themed events and activities for young girls. I am also passionate about graduate professional development. I am currently working with the Life Sciences Career Development Society at UTSG and an interdisciplinary group of graduate students at UTM to bring more career development events to UTM. In support of this initiative, I received the SGS Innovation in Graduate Professional Development Fund ($1,000). "