Laura Santini started her PhD in 2017 in the Leeb lab with the objective of understanding how pluripotency and differentiation of cells are regulated. Her research focused on a crucial cell state transition during early embryonic development using mouse embryonic stem cells as a model system. Laura discovered that regulation of the subcellular localization of FoxO transcription factors by the kinase Akt controls gene expression of critical factors required for cellular differentiation. In a complementary project, Laura examined how deregulation of an mRNA quality control pathway affects protein production and slows differentiation.
Currently, Laura is a post-doctoral researcher in the Vierbuchen lab at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, a lab with a focus on 3D modeling of mouse neurodevelopment. She continues to investigate the molecular mechanisms behind cell fate determination, specifically within cortical brain development.