Emily Sontag

Dr. Emily M. Sontag is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Marquette University. She earned a B.S. from Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (2005), a Ph.D. from the University of California, Irvine (2011), and completed postdoctoral training at Stanford University (2013).

• Education: B.S. (2005), Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology; Ph.D. (2011), University of California, Irvine; Postdoctoral Fellow (2013), Stanford University

Her research focuses on spatial protein quality control (PQC) mechanisms in neurodegenerative diseases, using yeast and mammalian systems. The Sontag Lab investigates how cells sequester misfolded proteins into membrane-less compartments, their role in disease pathogenesis, and how organelle interactions facilitate PQC. This work has implications for understanding Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s diseases through protein misfolding and aggregation dynamics.

The lab’s recent publications highlight studies on:

• ESCRT-dependent PQC pathways at nuclear-vacuolar junctions
• Phase separation and membrane-less organelles in disease
• Mechanisms of JUNQ compartment clearance
• Multi-scale imaging techniques for cellular protein aggregates

Dr. Sontag actively mentors Ph.D. students and collaborates on interdisciplinary projects involving cryo-microscopy and molecular chaperoning. Her lab welcomes diverse students interested in cellular stress responses and neurodegenerative disease mechanisms.