January 2023
- The Duncan Lab welcomes many new faces.
- Carol Vieira de Magalhaes joins the Duncan Lab as an undergraduate researcher.
- Jeff Pea, PhD joins the Duncan Lab as Scientific Lead for the Ovarian Contraceptive Discovery Initiative (OCDI).
- Carol Vieira de Magalhaes joins the Duncan Lab as an undergraduate researcher.
- Mariam Charles joins the Duncan Lab as an MS-RSM thesis track student.
- Ariel Halle and Anna Heinrich join the Duncan Lab for a rotation as part of the Driskill Graduate Program at Northwestern University.
- Stella Pollyanne joins the Duncan Lab as a visiting scholar from the Federal University of São João del Rei in the lab of Dr. Paulo Henrique de Almeida Campus-Junior.
- Jing Li, MD/PhD joins the lab as a multi-institutional postdoctoral scholar sponsored by Cornell University.
- Mariam Charles joins the Duncan Lab as an MS-RSM thesis track student.
December 2022
- The Duncan Lab enjoyed a Holiday Potluck with visiting scholars Hieu Nguyen and Hongwen Wu from the Ward Lab at the University of Hawai'i.
November 2022
- Yuna Lee joined the Duncan Lab as a part-time technologist in the histology core.
- Postdoc Hannes Campo, PhD visited the Buck Institute for Aging in Novato, California to give a special research seminar titled "The LATTICE platform: A user-friendly microfluidic device for long-term (multi-)organ culture and its potential application in aging research" on November 8th, 2022.
October 2022
- Dr. Duncan traveled to Brussels, Belgium to participate in the 2023 Grand Challenges meeting where she presented on behalf of the Ovarian Contraceptive Discovery Initiative which is funded through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. She was joined by co-PIs Dr. Shuo Xiao and Dr. Amander Clark. Her talks were: "Ovarian Contraceptive Discovery Initiative - tools for illuminating ovarian biology." Nonhormonal Contraceptive Discovery Program Meeting. October 22-23, 2022. and "Complex biological systems for novel contraceptive discovery." Gates Grand Challenges Annual Meeting, October 25, 2022.
- Asma Giornazi, MS joined the Duncan lab as Research Program Coordinator to work jointly with Dr. Mary Ellen Pavone.
- Dr. Aubrey Converse was appointed as Research Assistant Professor in the Division of Reproductive Science in Medicine in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Northwestern University.
- Dr. Francesca Duncan was appointed as the Thomas J. Watkins Memorial Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Northwestern University.
- Dr. Duncan gave a seminar titled "Ovarian aging research at the Buck - from mouse to human" at the Buck Institute for Aging in Novato, CA on October 14th, 2022.
- Dr. Duncan gave a talk titled "The aging ovarian microenvironment – from mechanism to models to therapeutic invertentions" during Endocrine Grand Rounds at the University of California San Francisco on October 12th, 2022.
- Victoria Zhu, MS joined the lab as a research technologist.
- Anushka Nair joined the lab as an undergraduate researcher.
September 2022
- A new Duncan Lab publication:
- Aubrey Converse, PhD, Farners Amargant i Riera, PhD, and Emily Zaniker published their a detailed protocol on encapsulated in vitro follicle growth in Biology of Reproduction.
- Converse A, Zaniker EJ, Amargant F, Duncan FE. Recapitulating folliculogenesis and oogenesis outside the body: encapsulated in vitro follicle growth. Biol Reprod. 2022 Sep 22:ioac176. doi: 10.1093/biolre/ioac176. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36136744.
- Aubrey Converse, PhD, Farners Amargant i Riera, PhD, and Emily Zaniker published their a detailed protocol on encapsulated in vitro follicle growth in Biology of Reproduction.
- Duncan Lab Members attended the 16th Annual Lewis Landsberg Research Day at Northwestern University.
- Aubrey Converse, PhD, presented her poster titled "FSH glycoforms exhibit differential bioactivities on early secondary follicles cultured in an encapsulated in vitro follicle growth system."
- Prianka H. Hashim presented her poster titled "The role of the cGAS-STING pathway in ovarian aging."
- Pooja Devrukhkar, MBBS, presented her poster titled "Establishing Doxorubicin-induced Senescence in the Human Ovary."
- Hannes Campo, PhD, presented his poster titled "Recreating Features of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome in Vitro Using LATTICE, a Tissue-Agnostic Microfluidic Platform."
- Caroline Kratka presented her poster titled "Pharmacologic inhibition of proprotein convertases alters the behavior of cumulus cells during mouse in vitro maturation" and was chosen as a finalist for the Basic Science Research Poster Award.
- Emily Zaniker presented her poster titled "Investigating spatial asymmetry in the molecular determinants of ovarian follicle rupture for non-hormonal contraceptive discovery."
- Shweta Dipali presented her poster titled "Ovarian Aging as a Mechanism for Ovarian Cancer."
- Farners Amargant i Riera, PhD received the Notice of Award for her K99 on "Mechanotransduction mechanisms of ovarian aging."
- A new Duncan lab publication:
- Dr. Elnur Babayev published in Molecular Human Reproduction and was selected for Editor's Choice!
- Elnur Babayev, Min Xu, Lonnie D Shea, Teresa K Woodruff, Francesca E Duncan, Follicle isolation methods reveal plasticity of granulosa cell steroidogenic capacity during mouse in vitro follicle growth, Molecular Human Reproduction, 2022;, gaac033, https://doi.org/10.1093/molehr/gaac033
- Dr. Elnur Babayev published in Molecular Human Reproduction and was selected for Editor's Choice!
August 2022
- Dr. Francesca Duncan and Dr. Kara Goldman were quoted by CNN in the article titled "Lengthening a woman's fertility may extend her life as well, research finds."

Paula Wetten joined the lab as an visiting scholar from the Instituto de Histología y Embriología de Mendoza (IHEM, UNCuyo-CONICET) sponsored by IUBMB Wood-Whelan Research Fellowship program.

- Duncan Lab members attended the 2022 Gordon Research Conference in Vermont
- Dr. Duncan was invited to give a talk titled "Female reproductive aging: perspectives from the game and beyond."
- Shweta Dipali presented her poster titled "Murine extrafollicular ovarian organoids exhibit age-dependent changes in organization and function."
- Aubrey Converse presented her poster titled "FSH glycoforms exhibit differential bioactivities on early secondary follicles cultured in an encapsulated in vitro follicle growth system.
- Farners Amargant was awarded a pilot grant through the Center for Advanced Molecular Imaging for the project: "The development of noninvasive bone mass density imaging as a marker of reproductive longevity in female mice."
- Caroline Kratka was appointed as a trainee on the CRS T32 training grant at Northwestern University. Emily Zaniker was reappointed for a second year on the CRS T32 training grant.
- Shweta Dipali was selected to participate in the Kellogg Management for Scientist and Engineers Program at Northwestern University.
July 2022
- The Duncan Lab received funding through the United States - Israel Binational Science Foundation for a project on "Biological pathways regulating gamete quality during the pubertal transition" in collaboration with Dr. Michael Klutstein and Dr. Tal Imbar at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
- Dr. Francesca Duncan was awarded tenure and promoted to Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology in the Division of Reproductive Science in Medicine at Northwestern University.
- Duncan Lab members presented their work at the 55th Society for the Study of Reproduction Annual Meeting from July 26th-29th in Spokane, Washington.
- Emily Zaniker participated in the pre-doctoral platform competition and won 2nd place for her flash talk titled "Spatial Asymmetry in the Molecular Determinants of Ovarian Follicle Rupture." She also was awarded the 2022 Lalor Foundation Merit Award!
- Elnur Babayev was awarded 3rd place in the post-doctoral poster competition for his poster presentation titled "Cumulus Cell Expansion and Extracellular Matrix Integrity are Impaired with Advanced Reproductive Age."
- Dr. Farners Amargant i Riera was awarded the 2022 Anita Payne Scholarship to support costs for attendance of the Frontiers in Reproduction (FIR) program.
- Dr. Francesca Duncan served as chair for mini-symposiums 17-20 titled "Fertility Decline with Aging - The Underlying Biology" with co-chair Dr. Elnur Babayev.
- A new Duncan Lab publication:
Suebthawinkul C, Babayev E, Zhou LT, Lee HC, Duncan FE Quantitative morphokinetic parameters identify novel dynamics of oocyte meiotic maturation and cumulus expansion. Biol Reprod 2022 Jul 08;. pii:ioac139
June 2022
- Dr. Duncan served as a panelist in a collaborative webinar between ASMB, the Histochemical Society, and the American Society for Investigative Pathology on June 29th.
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- Emily Zaniker presented a poster titled, "Investigating spatial asymmetry in the molecular determinants of ovarian follicle rupture for non-hormonal contraceptive discovery" at the 2022 GLC ASPET 35th Annual Meeting on Friday June 17, 2022 at Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, IL.
- Congratulations to Emily for being awarded 1st place in the graduate level poster competition!
- The Duncan Lab celebrated the plethora of accomplishments from this year with a dinner at Coco Pazzo Cafe on June 16th, 2022.
- Farners Amargant i Riera was appointed as the Inaugural Associate Editor for social media and engagement for the journal Molecular Human Reproduction. You can follow the MHR page on twitter @MHR_ReprodSci.
- Dr. Duncan, along with lab members Aubrey Converse and Emily Zaniker, hosted a webinar titled "Recapitulating folliculogenesis and oogenesis outside the body: encapsulated in vitro follicle growth," within the Society for Study of Reproduction's (SSR) Experimental Methods and Techniques in Reproduction webinar series on June 15th, 2022.
- MSTP student Emily Zaniker, BA, passed her qualifying exams for her doctorate degree. She is now an official PhD candidate!
- Chana Suebthawinkul, MD, MS received the 2022 Makowski award for most outstanding thesis student in the MS-RSM program! She received this award and gave a presentation on her research at graduation on June 9th.
- Lab members Chana Suebthawinkul, MD, MS, Madison Gowett, MS, and Kelsey Andersen, MS, graduated with Masters degrees in Reproductive Science and Medicine on June 9th, 2022.
- Dr. Duncan served as faculty for the Immunohistochemistry and Immunofluorescence(IHCIF): A Histochemical Society Hands-on Training Course from June 8-12, 2022 in Germantown, MD.
- Masters student Madison Gowett, MS, served as technical faculty for the Immunohistochemistry and Immunofluorescence(IHCIF): A Histochemical Society Hands-on Training Course from June 8-12, 2022 in Germantown, MD.
- Lab member Shweta Dipali presented her poster titled "Ovarian aging as a mechanism for ovarian cancer," at the Reproductive Aging Conference from June 5-9, 2022 in Palm Springs, CA.
- Lab member Hannah Anvari, MS, presented her poster titled "Mapping cellular senescence in the human ovary," at the Reproductive Aging Conference from June 5-9, 2022 in Palm Springs, CA.
- Dr. Francesca Duncan, PhD, co-organized the Reproductive Aging Conference from June 5-9, 2022 in Palm Springs, CA. This meeting was jointly hosted by the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB) and the American Aging Association (AGE). She also gave a talk titled "The aging ovarian environment - from the gamete and beyond."
- Dr. Duncan and colleagues were featured in an article published on June 2nd, 2022 by Neo Life titled "Is it Time to Cancel Menopause?" Click the link below to check it out.
May 2022
- Dr. Duncan, a Fulbright Scholar alum, served as a panelist during the Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program information session held on May 25th by the Buffett Institute for Global Affairs.
- Duncan Lab members Francesca Duncan, Farners Amargant, Aubrey Converse, and Elnur Babayev participated in the Frontiers in Reproduction course in Massachusetts.
- Elnur Babayev completed his research fellowship in the Duncan Lab and was appointed as a tenure-track Assistant Professor in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Northwestern University. The Babayev lab will open in September 2022.
- The Duncan lab had a successful few days of poster and oral presentations at the 2022 CRS Summit Meeting: Frontiers in Reproductive Science and Medicine held on May 12-13th, 2022 on Northwestern's Chicago Campus!
- Aubrey Converse, PhD had an oral presentation titled,“Effects of recombinant FSH glycoforms on secondary follicles cultured in an encapsulated in vitro follicle growth system”
- ChanakarnSuebthawinkul, MD, MS had an oral presentation titled,“Mouse strains with natural variations in mean lifespan exhibit differences in oocyte morphological parameters and morphokinetic dynamics of meiotic maturation” and participated on the alumni panel. She was awarded the 2022 Constance Campbell Memorial Research Award for her excellent talk!
- Kelsey Andersen, MS had an oral presentation titled,"Mechanisms of inflammaging in the human ovary: expression of tryptophan/kynurenine pathway proteins”
- Pooja Devrukhkar had a poster presentation titled, "Establishing Doxorubicin-induced senescence in the human ovary"
- Hoi Chang Lee, PhD had a poster presentation titled, "Morphokinetic parameters of mouse egg activation and embryo development by ionomycin and SrCl2 using EmbryoScope+™"
- Caroline Kratka had a poster presentation titled, "Pharmacologic inhibition of proprotein convertases alters the behavior of cumulus cells during mouse in vitro maturation "
- Katy Trotter, MS had a poster presentation titled, "Murine Ovarian Explants Model Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome in vitro Under Dynamic Culture in LATTICE "
- Madison Gowett, MS had a poster presentation titled, "Murine extrafollicular ovarian organoids exhibit age-dependent changes in structure and function"
- Hannah Anvari, MS had a poster presentation titled, "The Cellular Senescence Network (SenNet): prospective tissue collection to map senescent cells in the human ovary"
- Shweta Dipali had a poster presentation titled, "Proteomic analysis of native and decellularized ovaries reveals age-dependent extracellular matrix and immune profiles" Shweta won the 2022 Constance Campbell Memorial Research Award for her poster presentation!
- Tracy Zhou, MS had a poster presentation titled, "Towards germ cell-specific in vivo genome editing: generating transgenic mice that express oocyte-specific Cas9"
- Karen Velez, MS had a poster presentation titled, "Extremely long-lived proteins in the mammalian ovary and oocyte"
- Rebecca Gu had a poster presentation titled, "Application of Ovarian Anatomy Nomenclature to Classify and Quantify Follicles in the Rhesus Macaque Ovary"
- Emily Zaniker had a poster presentation titled, "Investigating Spatial Asymmetry in the Molecular Determinants of Ovarian Follicle Rupture for Non-Hormonal Contraceptive Discovery"
- Rhea Sharma had a poster presentation titled, "Acute caloric restriction attenuates the age-associated loss of ovarian follicle number in a population of peri-menopausal rhesus macaques"
- Chanakarn Suebthawinkul, MD, MS presented her work at the 14th Annual Conference of the Oncofertility Consortium on May 2-4, 2022, Pittsburgh, PA.
- Congratulations Madison Gowett for being selected to serve as teaching faculty at the Immunohistochemistry and Immunofluorescence: A Histochemical Society hands-on training course!
April 2022
- Welcomed two new lab members, Katy Trotter and Caroline Kratka to the team! Katy will be transitioning into to the new lab manager position and Caroline will be joining the Gates project group for her PhD.
- Congratulated Rhea Sharma for being awarded Northwestern University Summer Undergraduate Research Grant to investigate age-dependent changes in the structure and function of the mouse oviduct or fallopian tube which may predispose this organ to neoplastic transformation!
- Rebecca Gu presented a poster titled, "Application of Ovarian Anatomy Nomenclature to Classify and Quantify Follicles in the Rhesus Macaque Ovary", at the 2022 Chicago Area Undergraduate Research Symposium at Northwestern University, Chicago, IL on April 9th 2022. Rebecca also won first place in the Biological & Environmental Sciences category!
- Rhea Sharma presented a poster titled, "Acute caloric restriction attenuates the age-associated loss of ovarian follicle number in a population of peri-menopausal rhesus macaques" at the 2022 Chicago Area Undergraduate Research Symposium at Northwestern University, Chicago, IL on April 9th 2022.
- Dr. Duncan gave a talk titled, "Beyond the gamete: the aging ovarian microenvironment" for the IVF Worldwide Online Congress on April 9th, 2022 (virtual).
March 2022
- Dr. Duncan gave a talk titled,“The first to age: mechanisms of ovarian aging” for the Cell Biology Department seminar series at the University of Connecticut Health on March 23rd, 2022 (virtual).
- Dr. Duncan gave a talk titled, "“The first to age: mechanisms and consequences of ovarian aging” for the Ovarian Biology Consortium in Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem, Israel, on March 22nd, 2022 (virtual).
- Dr. Duncan gave a talk titled, “The microenvironment as a driver of ovarian aging” at the 2022 Society for Reproductive Investigation Ovarian Biology Satellite Meeting in Denver, CO, on March 16th, 2022.
- In honor of International Women's Day, we celebrated and thanked all the talented individuals in our lab!
- Dr. Duncan gave a talk titled, “Beyond the gamete: the aging ovarian microenvironment” for the Molecular and Cell Biology and Genetics seminar series at Drexel University College of Medicine on March 3rd, 2022 (virtual).
February 2022
- Congratulated Madison Gowett for successfully defending her thesis and earning her MS in Reproductive Science & Medicine!
- Congratulated Chanakarn Suebthawinkul, MD for successfully defending her thesis and earning her MS in Reproductive Science & Medicine!
- Congratulated our clinical fellow, Dr. Elnur Babayev on his new assistant professor role in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University starting in September 2022.
- Celebrated all of the amazing women in our lab that continue to lead the way on International Day of Women and Girls in Science!
- Dr. Elnur Babayev and Dr. Farners Amargant were among a highly competitive pool of applicants that were selected to attend the 2022 Frontiers of Reproduction advanced training course.
- Dr. Aubrey Converse was selected to be a teaching assistant at the 2022 Frontiers of Reproduction advanced training course.
- We welcomed an undergraduate student in the BA/MD program to the Duncan Lab! Read more about Preeta Kamat in our lab members section!
- Rhea Sharma and Rebecca Gu were awarded a Marcia Storch Research Award from the Center for Reproductive Science to support the work they are doing on aging and caloric restriction on the ovary in the rhesus macaque model.
January 2022
- A new Duncan Lab publication:
- Babayev E, Duncan FE Age-associated changes in cumulus cells and follicular fluid: The local oocyte microenvironment as a determinant of gamete quality. Biol Reprod 2022 Jan 04;. pii:ioab241
- We welcomed a new masters student to the Duncan Lab! Read more about Pooja Devrukhkar in our lab members section!
- We had Prianka Hashim, a PhD student from the Driskill graduate program in life sciences join the lab for a winter rotation!