Jenny Morton | |
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Born | Anne Jennifer Morton Kaikohe, New Zealand |
Nationality | New Zealand |
Alma mater | |
Scientific career | |
Fields | |
Institutions | Newnham College, Cambridge |
Anne Jennifer Morton, FRSB , known as Jenny Morton, is a New Zealand neurobiologist and academic, specialising in neurodegenerative diseases. She has been a Fellow of Newnham College, Cambridge, since 1991 and a Professor of Neurobiology at the University of Cambridge since 2009. Her current research is focused on Huntington's disease, and she is using sheep as a large animal model for the disease. This research has led her to discover that sheep can recognise human faces.
Morton was born in Kaikohe, New Zealand, [1] and was raised in the country's Far North District. [2] She undertook doctoral research in physiology at the University of Otago, completing her Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in 1983. [3] [4] On 21 February 2009, the University of Cambridge admitted her to Master of Arts (MA Cantab) status. [5] She was awarded a Doctor of Science (ScD) degree by the University of Cambridge in 2014. [3]
Having completed her doctorate, Morton moved to England to join the Department of Pharmacology, University of Cambridge as a post-doctoral fellow. [3] In 1991, she was appointed a lecturer at the university and elected a Fellow of Newnham College, Cambridge. [3] Since 1995, she has been the director of studies in medicine and veterinary medicine at Newnham College. [3] [6] In 2005, she was made a Reader in Experimental Neurobiology in the Department of Pharmacology. [7] In 2009, she was appointed Professor of Neurobiology in the Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience. [8] She is the first New Zealand woman to be appointed to a professorship at Cambridge. [9] From October 2009 to September 2010, she held a Royal Society Leverhulme Trust Senior Research Fellowship. [10] In 2015, she was the Visiting Seelye Fellow at the University of Auckland. [2] [11]
Morton's current research focuses on "understanding the mechanisms underlying neurodegeneration and on developing strategies to delay or prevent the death of neurones in injured or degenerating brain". [12] She has specialised in Huntington's disease since 1993. [3] [2] Having undertaken research into Huntington's using transgenic mice, she moved into using transgenic sheep as a large animal model of Huntington's disease. [10] [11]
Morton's research with sheep has also led to an interest in measuring their learning and memory. [6] Her team have been able to teach sheep to choose a familiar face over unfamiliar one when presented with two photographs, which has led to the discovery that sheep can recognise human faces. [13] [14]
Morton is an elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology (FRSB). [3]
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