Jennifer Zuckerman Malin

Presented by Shai Shaham

B.A., University of Pennsylvania

Components of the Ubiquitin Proteasome System are Required for the Nonapoptotic Death of the Caenorhabditis elegans Linker Cell

It is a distinct pleasure for me to be here today to participate in Jennifer’s graduation. Jennifer is a persistent and motivated scientist and it has been exciting to watch her grow to become a seasoned investigator. She entered the lab the proverbial naïve, bright-eyed, and bushy-tailed graduate student, and will leave with a strong understanding of what makes a good experiment. This is what graduate school is all about.

From the beginning, it was clear that Jennifer was driven. She joined my lab with a keen interest in understanding a novel and mysterious form of cell death we had uncovered that plays an important role in the development of the nematode C. elegans, and which may be conserved across animals. She chose to work on a difficult project—we had found that a protein regulating the degradation of other proteins was important for cell death; however, it was also important for other essential functions. Studying the effects of removing this protein from the animal was therefore challenging, as animals did not survive.

Undeterred, Jennifer carved out a path using creative strategies to understand what this protein does. Although we still have much to learn, Jennifer’s work has generated a framework for thinking about this new cell death process. This framework guides much of our current modeling. Jennifer’s exciting work has been recognized by invitations to speak at international meetings.

Besides becoming an experienced scientist, Jennifer contributed to the lab in many other ways. She routinely helped to organize our lab’s contribution to a joint group meeting we run with several labs on campus, and has been a source of support and advice for new lab members. She is a generous and thoughtful person, and has contributed greatly to the open and friendly character of the lab.

Jennifer will remain at Rockefeller for a few more months as she completes work for her paper, and she plans to continue her scientific career as a postdoc. I have no doubt that she will choose her future lab with great care and that she will be a strong contribution to that lab.