Courtney Schroeder

Dr. Courtney Schroeder is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Pharmacology at UT Southwestern Medical Center, where she established her independent research group in November 2021. She leads investigations into cytoskeletal evolution using interdisciplinary approaches including fly genetics, structural biology, and evolutionary analysis.

Education:

• B.S. in Chemistry (Biochemistry specialization) - University of Virginia
• MPhil in Biochemistry - University of Cambridge (Churchill Scholar)
• Ph.D. - UC San Francisco (Ron Vale Lab)
• Postdoctoral Fellowship - Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (Harmit Malik Lab)

Her research explores rapidly evolving non-canonical cytoskeletal proteins and their roles in fertility, development, and cancer. Key focus areas include:

• Evolutionary diversification of cytoskeletal proteins in germline biology
• Functional consequences in Drosophila and mammalian systems
• Structural analysis of divergent actin-related proteins (Arps)
• Roles in cancer progression and reproductive health

She employs techniques ranging from evolutionary genomics to high-resolution imaging.

Her recent publications (2018-2023) demonstrate strong focus on cytoskeletal diversification mechanisms, particularly through studies of actin-related proteins in Drosophila testis function, ciliary assembly, and dynein motor mechanisms. Work consistently integrates evolutionary biology with cellular mechanistics.

Awards & Honors:

• Churchill Scholarship

She actively recruits PhD students, postdoctoral fellows, and technicians for her lab, focusing on cytoskeletal evolution research. Current projects investigate:

• Divergent cytoskeletal proteins in cancer
• Testis-specific Arps in female fertility
• High-resolution analysis of sperm maturation mechanisms