Dr. Joanna Chustecki: Unravelling the Mysteries of Mitochondrial Motion
Hello! My name is Joanna Chustecki, I am a plant biologist with a fascination mitochondria, the cellular powerhouses. They move very quickly around the cell, like cars in a city, and I am trying to uncover why. My research focuses on the movement of mitochondria, how this regulates biomolecule exchange and maintains plant health.
I am originally from Birmingham, UK, and completed my Bachelors and Doctoral degrees at the University of Birmingham. My PhD project used social networks to quantify connectivity between plant mitochondria. After a short stint as a postdoc, I moved to the University of Nebraska, USA, as a postdoc to focus on mitochondrial genetics.
I was then encouraged to apply for the WiRe Fellowship by my current host, Prof. Markus Schwarzländer, and was delighted to move to Münster to work with the brilliant Plant Energy Biology team where my project uses advanced microscopy and flourescent biosensors to focus on the functional impacts of mitochondrial dynamics.
Hiking (or in the UK, rambling) is one of my favourite things to do, and I relish the chance to do this abroad and spot animals and plants that I do not see at home. My highlights from the US include golden eagles, chipmunks, whales, saguaro cacti and sandhill cranes.
Host Institute: Institute for Plant Biology and Biotechnology and Plant Energy Biology
Scientific Host: Prof. Dr. Markus Schwarzländer