Jennifer Hill
As a biologist, I understand the importance of creativity in tackling intricate scientific problems such as the microbiome. The majority of the genes encoded by our resident microbes are completely unknown and unexplored, providing both immense promise and overwhelming complexity for researchers. My lab will strive to unravel a bit of this potential using cross disciplinary collaboration, teamwork, and imagination.
Jen received her B.S. in Biology at Humboldt State University (Now CalPoly Humboldt) where she worked with Patty Siering exploring the bacterial diversity of volcanic acid hot springs. She completed a post-baccalaureate CIRM (California Institute of Regenerative Medicine) fellowship at UCSF in Didier Stainier’s lab on pancreatic beta-cell regeneration. After this, she joined Karen Guillemin’s lab at the University of Oregon for her PhD, where she uncovered the connection between the gut microbiota and beta-cell development in zebrafish. Jen moved to Utah in 2018 to start her postdoc with June Round and Charlie Murtaugh, further studying the microbiota-pancreas connection in mice. Jennifer joined the faculty at the University of Colorado Boulder in the BioFrontiers Institute and the Department of Molecular Cellular Developmental Biology in the Spring of 2024.
2005 - 2010
Bachelor of Science
Humboldt State University
(CalPoly Humboldt)
2010 - 2011
CIRM fellowship
UC San Francisco
2011 - 2017
Doctorate
University of Oregon
2018 - 2024
Post-Doctorate
University of Utah
2024 -
Assistant Professor
Down time outside of lab is essential! I spend my “out of office” time running, skiing, biking, backpacking, fishing, reading non-scientific works (especially giant fantasy novels ), cooking (especially with microbes!), and traveling with friends and family.