Mayssa H. Mokalled, PhD, an assistant professor of developmental biology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has received the 2020 H.W. Mossman Award in Developmental Biology from the American Association for Anatomy.
This award recognizes outstanding researchers in developmental biology who, though still in the early stages of their careers, already have made important contributions to the field and show promise for future accomplishments.
Mokalled studies spinal cord regeneration in zebrafish, a model organism that has the capacity to heal even severe spinal cord injuries. Her lab is investigating whether the regenerative capacity of zebrafish is conserved in mammals but masked by other molecular pathways. Specifying the details of the cellular and molecular pathways of spinal cord regeneration in zebrafish could provide insight into the potential for such regeneration in mammals.