Dr Claire Senner

Research

The processes of embryo implantation and the initiation of placental development are pivotal in the establishment and maintenance of a healthy pregnancy, but there is still much to learn about the molecular mechanisms underpinning these very early developmental processes.

Post-transcriptional regulatory mechanisms are an understudied facet of mammalian reproduction and development, and I am particularly interested in the pathways controlling mRNA stability and decay at key cell state transitions during the early postimplantation period when pregnancy loss is prevalent. In the lab I use embryonic and trophoblast stem cells in culture, as well as in vivo models, to understand how RNA decay factors contribute to normal development with a focus on the placental trophoblast lineages which are foundational for reproductive success.