Summer Thyme

Summer Thyme is an Assistant Professor at UMass Chan Medical School, primarily affiliated with the T.H. Chan School of Medicine's Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biotechnology. She also holds roles in multiple departments including Neurobiology, NeuroNexus Institute, and the Morningside Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. Her research focuses on neurodevelopmental disorders using zebrafish models, CRISPR genome engineering, and schizophrenia-associated genes. She holds a BA in Biology/Chemistry from Scripps College and a PhD in Biochemistry from the University of Washington.

Her research interests span neurodevelopmental mechanisms, genetic mutations affecting brain structure, and translational applications of CRISPR technology. Key areas include studying autism-risk mutations, mitochondrial regulation in neural stem cells, and cerebellar development. She has contributed to platforms like ZebraShare for data dissemination and developed low-cost behavioral phenotyping systems for zebrafish.

Recent publications highlight studies on diencephalon development, sensory system impairments in zebrafish mutants, and CRISPR-based genome editing tools. Collaborations involve interdisciplinary teams addressing neurodevelopmental and genetic questions. Her work has implications for understanding psychiatric and neurological disorders through model organism research.