Brian Walter

Brian Walter is an Associate Professor of Biology at Illinois Wesleyan University. He earned a B.S. in Zoology from Eastern Illinois University (1995), a Ph.D. in Cell and Structural Biology from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2004), followed by a postdoctoral position at the same institution (2004-2006). His research focuses on developmental variation in vertebrates, particularly characoid fishes like Moenkhausia sanctaefilomenae, examining molecular mechanisms behind morphological differences such as jaw development. Prior work explored gene expression in lens development and regeneration in Xenopus laevis.

• Education: B.S. (1995), Ph.D. (2004), Postdoc (2004-2006)
• Research Interests: Developmental biology, skeletal variation, gene expression, comparative embryology
• Teaching: General Biology, Developmental Biology, Molecular Foundations of Development
• Current Projects: Jaw development in characids, allometric growth, cloning developmental genes (Pax1, Pax9, Sox9, Foxd3)

His publications span studies on Xenopus eye development, lens induction, and characoid embryology. Recent work compares skeletal development between characids and Danio rerio, integrating molecular and cellular analyses to explain evolutionary morphological differences. Teaching responsibilities include experimental embryology and molecular development courses.