| Laura Hewitson | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1969 Birmingham, England |
| Alma mater | University of Essex University of York |
| Occupation | Affiliate Scientist at Washington National Primate Research Center Research Director at Johnson Center for Child Health and Development |
| Years active | 1994-Present |
| Spouse | Never married |
Laura Hewitson is a British-born primate researcher noted for her work in the fields of reproductive biology and behavior. She is an Affiliate Scientist at the Washington National Primate Research Center in Seattle, WA. Additionally, she is Research Director[1] of Johnson Center for Child Health and Development in Austin, TX. From 2002-2010 she was an Associate Professor of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences[1] at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and member of Magee-Women's Research Institute and Foundation (MWRI&F) in Pittsburgh, PA
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Hewitson was born in 1969 in Birmingham, England and was educated in the public school system. She graduated with a BSc. (Hons) in Biological Sciences from the University of Essex, UK in 1990. Shortly after, Hewitson attended the University of York, UK, where she obtained her D. Phil. in Biology, for which she was awarded the K.M. Stott prize. In 1994, Hewitson moved to the University of Wisconsin-Madison where she began post-doctoral studies in the Department of Meat and Animal Sciences studying in the laboratory of Neal First, PhD. In 1995 she began working under the mentorship of Dr. Gerald Schatten in the Department of Zoology. In 1997, Hewitson moved to the Oregon National Primate Research Center at the Oregon Health & Science University.
Throughout her academic career, Hewitson has been a passionate teacher to children through programs such as Advocates for Women in Science, Engineering and Math (AWSEM), as well as teaching physician-scientists at the Woods Hole Laboratory at a National Institute of Child Health and Human Development-sponsored ‘Frontiers in Reproduction’ course.
Hewitson's research has primarily focused on embryo metabolism, cytoskeletal dynamics, centrosome abnormalities during fertilization, assisted reproductive technology (ART) in non-human primates and infant primate neonatal development. More recently, Hewitson’s research has focused on understanding genetic and environmental influences that lead to adverse pregnancy outcomes, with special emphasis on autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Her research has been funded through the National Institutes of Health, as well as private foundations. Hewitson’s work has been published in many journals, such as Science, Nature Medicine, Biology of Reproduction, Human Reproduction, Fertility and Sterility, Acta Neurobiologiae Experimentalis, Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, and the Journal of Law, Medicine and Ethics.
Hewitson’s work on primate fertilization examined the role of the centrosome during assisted reproduction and identified unique check-points during the first cell cycle. She also explored the safety of new methods of assisted reproduction by producing infant primates by ART to follow their early development and behavior (see Selected Publications).
Hewitson’s more recent research has focused on the study of genetic versus epigenetic (environmental) causes of neurodevelopmental disorders. She is now continuing this research in Austin, TX as the Research Director of Johnson Center for Child Health and Development.[1]
Hewitson, L.C., Leese, H.J. (1993) Energy metabolism of the trophectoderm and inner cell mass of the mouse blastocyst. J Exp Zool. 267:337-343.
Hewitson, L.C., Martin, K.L., Leese, H.J. (1996) Effects of metabolic inhibitors on mouse preimplantation embryo development and the energy metabolism of isolated inner cell masses. Mol Reprod Dev. 43:323-330.
Hewitson, L., Simerly, C., Tengowski, M.W, Sutovsky, P., Navara, C,S., Haavisto, A.J. and Schatten, G. (1996) Microtubule and chromatin configurations during rhesus intracytoplasmic sperm injection: Successes and Failures. Biol. Reprod. 55:271–280.
Hewitson, L., Haavisto A, Simerly C, Jones J and Schatten G (1997) Microtubule organization and chromatin configurations in hamster oocytes during fertilization, parthenogenetic activation and after insemination with human sperm. Biol.Reprod. 57: 967-975.
Hewitson L, Takahashi D, Dominko T, Simerly C, and Schatten G. (1998) Fertilization and embryo development to blastocysts after intracytoplasmic sperm injection in the rhesus monkey. Hum Reprod 13:3449-3455.
Schatten G, Hewitson L, Simerly C, Sutovsky P and Huszar G. (1998) Cell and Molecular Biological Challenges of ICSI: A.R.T. Before Science? J Law Med Ethics 26:29-37.
Hewitson, L, Dominko, T, Takahashi, D, Ramalho-Santos, J, Sutovsky, P, Fanton, J, Jacob, D, Monteith, D, Neuringer, M, Battaglia, D, Simerly, C, and G. Schatten. (1999) Births of ICSI monkeys: unique checkpoints during the first cell cycle of fertilization. Nature Medicine 5:431-433.
Ramalho-Santos, J., Moreno, R.D., Sutovksy, P., Chan, A.Q.., Hewitson, L., Wessel G.M., Simerly C.R., and Schatten, G. (2000) SNAREs in mammalian sperm: possible implications for fertilization. Dev Bio 223:54-69.
Hewitson, L., Martinovich, C., Simerly, C., Takahashi, D., Schatten, G. (2002) Intracytoplasmic injection of rhesus testicular sperm (TESE-ICSI) and elongated spermatids (ELSI) results in healthy offspring. Fertil Steril. 77:794-801.
Simerly, C., Dominko, T., Navara, C., Payne, C., Capuano, S., Gosman, G., Chong, K.Y., Compton, D., Hewitson, L., and Schatten, G. (2000) Molecular Correlates of Primate Nuclear Transfer Failures. Science 300: 297-299.
Dettmer, AM, Houser, LA, Ruppenthal, GC, Capuano, S, Hewitson, L. (2007) Growth and developmental outcomes of three high-risk infant rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). Am J Primatol. 69: 503-518.
Hewitson, L., Lopresti, B., Mason, N.S, Stott, C. and Tomko, J. (2010) Influence of pediatric vaccines on amygdala growth and opioid ligand binding in rhesus macaque infants: A pilot study. Acta Neurobiologiae Exp 70: 147-164.
Hewitson L, Houser LA, Stott C, Sackett G, Tomko JL, Atwood D, Blue L, Railey White E, Wakefield AJ. (2010) Delayed acquisition of neonatal reflexes in newborn primates receiving a thimerosal-containing Hepatitis B vaccine: Influence of gestational age and birth weight. JournalToxicology and Environmental Health, Part A, 73: 1298-1313..