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Hire Dr. Natasha Z.

Profile Summary

I have recently completed my first postdoc with Dr. Deborah Bourc’his in the “Epigenetic Decisions and Reproduction in Mammals” Group at the Curie Institute in Paris, France. Within the Bourc’his lab, I successfully directed a project to define the behaviour of transposons during spermatogenesis in the murine germline. The research I have conducted thus far has provided me with substantial knowledge in the fields of developmental biology and molecular biology. I have advanced technical skills in cell biology, molecular biology and cytogenetics and acquired expertise in a range of current epigenetics research techniques. Furthermore, I gained experience utilising next generation sequencing technologies such as RNAseq, small RNAseq and NanoString. My interest in developmental biology began as an Honours student under the supervision of Dr. Andrew French and Prof. Michael Holland at the Monash Institute of Medical Research, Monash University. At this time I was interested in improving the in vitro maturation system of bovine oocytes. During my Honours year I routinely conducted IVF in the bovine, as well as immunofluorescence and microscopy of embryos at different stages of development. After this I went on to do a PhD with Profs. Moira O’Bryan and David de Kretser at Monash University. During my PhD I conducted numerous studies to define how the loss of one functional copy of DNA Methyltransferase 3 Like affected male sex chromosomes as they undergo a process of silencing during meiosis. During this time I improved my skills in murine germ cell biology and embryology. I learnt a range of cell biology techniques including chromosome spreads and FISH as well as gained experience utilising microarray technology. As a result of this research I published two articles (‘Nature Genetics’, ‘PLoS One’) identifying DNMT3L as the first example of a mammalian ‘paternal effect’ gene and describing the mechanism by which this effect occurred. In addition, I published a well cited review in the journal Reproduction. This experience instilled in me a passion for reproductive biology and I decided to further my career in this important field of science. For my postdoctoral appointment, I sought to improve my molecular biology and epigenetics training by joining a laboratory with a strong focus in DNA methylation and chromatin biology. Working with Dr. Deborah Bourc’his, I gained an understanding of how epigenetic modifications regulate transposons in the murine male germline. My time in the Bourc’his laboratory allowed me to advance my skills in cell and molecular biology as well as confocal microscopy. I had the opportunity to learn a range of current epigenetics research techniques as well as gained experience with genome-wide approaches utilising next generation sequencing technologies. During my postdoctoral appointment, I primarily utilised a DNA methylation deficient mouse line (Dnmt3L) and a piRNA deficient mouse line (Miwi2) to delineate how a mutation in either gene can result in transposon reactivation during spermatogenesis and consequently infertility. As a result of this research I have a first author manuscript in review in Genes and Development.

Subject Matter Expertise

• ☆ Developmental Biology
• ☆ Embryology
• ☆ Molecular Biology
• ☆ Genetics
• ☆ Microarrays
• ☆ Chromatin
• ☆ Epigenetics
• ☆ Mutagenesis
• ☆ Cytogenetics
• ☆ Basic Immunology
• ☆ Histology
• ☆ Microscopy

Services

• Consulting
• Data & AI
• Product Development

Work Experience

Postdoctoral Scientist

Curie Institute

September 2009 - September 2014

PhD student

Monash University

May 2005 - September 2009

Research Assistant

Monash Institute of Medical Research

December 2003 - November 2004

Education

Doctor of Philosophy

Monash University

May 2005 - May 2009

Honours Degree of Biomedical Science

Monash University

December 2002 - October 2003

Bachelor of Biomedical Science

Monash University

December 1999 - November 2002

Certifications

• Certification details not provided.

Publications

JOURNAL ARTICLE

R. Duffie, S. Ajjan, M. V. Greenberg, N. Zamudio, M. Escamilla del Arenal, J. Iranzo, I. Okamoto, S. Barbaux, P. Fauque, D. Bourc'his(2014). The Gpr1/Zdbf2 locus provides new paradigms for transient and dynamic genomic imprinting in mammals . Genes {\&} Development. 28. (5). p. 463--478. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press

Natasha Zamudio, William A. Pastor, Hume Stroud, Kevin Nee, Wanlu Liu, Dubravka Pezic, Sergei Manakov, Serena A. Lee, Guillaume Moissiard, Déborah Bourc’his, et al.(2014). {MORC}1 represses transposable elements in the mouse male germline . Nat Comms. 5. p. 5795. Nature Publishing Group

Y. Tarabay, E. Kieffer, M. Teletin, C. Celebi, A. Van Montfoort, N. Zamudio, M. Achour, R. El Ramy, E. Gazdag, P. Tropel, et al.(2013). The mammalian-specific Tex19.1 gene plays an essential role in spermatogenesis and placenta-supported development . Human Reproduction. 28. (8). p. 2201--2214. Oxford University Press ({OUP})

Natasha M. Zamudio, Hamish S. Scott, Katja Wolski, Chi-Yi Lo, Charity Law, Dillon Leong, Sarah A. Kinkel, Suyinn Chong, Damien Jolley, Gordon K. Smyth, et al.(2011). {DNMT}3L Is a Regulator of X Chromosome Compaction and Post-Meiotic Gene Transcription . {PLoS} {ONE}. 6. (3). p. e18276. Public Library of Science ({PLoS})

N Zamudio, D Bourc'his(2010). Transposable elements in the mammalian germline: a comfortable niche or a deadly trap? . Heredity. 105. (1). p. 92--104. Nature Publishing Group

N. M Zamudio, S. Chong, M. K O'Bryan(2008). Epigenetic regulation in male germ cells . Reproduction. 136. (2). p. 131--146. {BioScientifica}

Natasha Zamudio, Suyinn Chong, Nicola Vickaryous, Alyson Ashe, Neil Youngson, Sarah Hemley, Tomas Stopka, Arthur Skoultchi, Jacqui Matthews, Hamish S Scott, et al.(2007). Modifiers of epigenetic reprogramming show paternal effects in the mouse . Nat Genet. 39. (5). p. 614--622. Nature Publishing Group

WORKING PAPER

DNA methylation restrains transposons from adopting a chromatin signature permissive for meiotic recombination. Genes and Development.