Biology Seminar Series: Rose Z. Hill, "Mechanotransduction in unexpected places"

Rose Hill got her start in science studying sea urchin embryogenesis at Scripps Institution of Oceanography,
and transitioned into the exciting world of sensory biology during her Ph.D. with Diana Bautista at UC
Berkeley, where she studied the neurobiology of itch and pain. As a Helen Hay Whitney and K99 Postdoctoral
Fellow in the laboratory of Ardem Patapoutian at Scripps Research, she continued her work on itch and
branched out into studying how the kidneys use the mechanically activated ion channel PIEZO2 to regulate
the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, an essential pathway for fluid homeostasis and blood volume
regulation. She is fascinated by how sensory nerves participate in physiological and pathophysiological
processes within internal organs. Moving forward in her own laboratory, she aims to merge her expertise in
sensory biology and the kidneys to pioneer the nascent field of renal sensory biology to understand how the
nervous system regulates the complex functions of this organ system.