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- Judith Yanowitz, PhD
Judith Yanowitz, PhD
Professor; Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences; University of Pittsburgh
We model human infertility in a microscopic worm that goes from egg to adult in three days instead of thirty years.
Judith Yanowitz, PhD
Research in Brief
Dr. Yanowitz’s research focuses on understanding how eggs and sperm form correctly, with an emphasis on why errors in this process increase with age, leading to infertility and birth defects. By studying the molecular details of meiosis—the cell division that creates eggs and sperm—her work seeks to unlock new ways to improve reproductive health and fertility treatments. She also leads programs aimed at mentoring the next generation of women’s health scientists.
Current Projects
- Studying mechanisms regulating meiotic recombination and chromosome behavior during gamete formation.
- Investigating causes of chromosome mis-segregation leading to reproductive aging and infertility.
- Interrogating the migration of the worm somatic gonad as a platform for understanding pronephros kidney development
- Leading educational initiatives to develop future women’s health researchers through internships and teacher academy programs.
Selected Publications
- Raices M, Balmir F, Silva N, Li W, Grundy MK, Hoffman DK, Altendorfer E, Camacho CJ, Bernstein KA, Colaiácovo MP, Yanowitz J. 2024. Genetic and physical interactions reveal overlapping and distinct contributions to meiotic double-strand break formation in C. elegans. bioRxiv, 2024.02.23.581796. doi: 10.1101/2024.02.23.581796.
- Leydig ZR and Yanowitz JL. 2024. Transgenerational Sterility of a Transgenic C. elegans: A Cautionary Tale, Micropublication. doi: 10.17912/micropub.biology.001343. PMID: 39593579.
- Blazickova J, Trivedi S, Bowman R, Geetha SS, Subah S, Scuzzarella M, Chang A, Chandran AR, Yanowitz JL, Smolikove S, Jantsch V, Zetka M, and Silva N. 2025. Distinct intersecting pathways link homolog pairing to initiation of meiotic chromosome synapsis. Nat Commun. 16(1):2516. doi: 10.1038/s41467-025-57862-y. PMID: 40082424.
- Raices M, Bowman N, Smolikove S, and Yanowitz JL. 2021. Aging negatively impacts DNA repair and bivalent formation in the C. elegans germ line. Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology. Front Cell Dev Biol. 2021 Aug 4;9:695333. doi: 10.3389/fcell.2021.695333. eCollection 2021. PMID: 34422819.
- Jofré DM, Hoffman DK, Cervino AS, Hahn GM, Grundy M, Yun S, Amrit FRG, Stolz DB, Godoy LF, Salvatore E, Rossi FA, Ghazi A, Cirio MC, Yanowitz JL*, Hochbaum D*. 2022. The CHARGE syndrome ortholog CHD-7 regulates TGF-β pathways in Caenorhabditis elegans. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A, 119(15):e2109508119. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2109508119. PMID: 35394881. (*Corresponding Authors)
- McFadden WM and Yanowitz JL, idpr: A package for profiling and analyzing Intrinsically Disordered Proteins in R. 2022. PLoS One, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0266929. eCollection 2022.PMID: 35436286.
- Macaisne N, Touzon MS, Rajokovic A, and Yanowitz JL. 2022. Modeling primary ovarian insufficiency-associated loci in C. elegans identifies novel pathogenic allele of MSH5. J Assist Reprod Genet. doi: 10.1007/s10815-022-02494-0. Online ahead of print.PMID: 35437714
- Lourds MF, Quesada-Candela C, Murray M, Ugoaru C, Yanowitz JL*, and Allen AK*. 2022. Proteasomal subunit depletions differentially affect germline integrity in C. elegans. Frontiers Cell Dev Biol, 10:901320. doi: 10.3389/fcell.2022.901320, PMID: 36060813. (*Corresponding Authors).
For additional publications, click here.
Research Group
In the News
Oct 9, 2024
Q&A With Dr. Judith Yanowitz
Jan 17, 2023
4 Pitt faculty members won grants from the Charles E. Kaufman Foundation
Sep 15, 2020
#NYFW Video: How Fashion Impacts Women and Infants
Jun 24, 2019
Dr. Judith Yanowitz: Studying Meiosis and its link to fertility
Jun 24, 2019
Dr. Judith Yanowitz: Understanding the Environment’s Impact on Health