{"id":79300,"date":"2021-08-31T11:34:19","date_gmt":"2021-08-31T18:34:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/?page_id=79300"},"modified":"2025-03-28T16:21:16","modified_gmt":"2025-03-28T23:21:16","slug":"melissa-labonty","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/biology\/faculty\/melissa-labonty\/","title":{"rendered":"Melissa LaBonty"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-50sq96w-3ca4d8fd12fb892ce33f6af3a3a402ba\">\n.avia-section.av-50sq96w-3ca4d8fd12fb892ce33f6af3a3a402ba{\nbackground-color:#f3f3f3;\nbackground-image:unset;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div id='av_section_1' aria-label='SOU Biology Individual Faculty Page - Melissa LaBonty Intro Section' class='avia-section av-50sq96w-3ca4d8fd12fb892ce33f6af3a3a402ba main_color avia-section-default avia-no-border-styling  avia-builder-el-0  el_before_av_submenu  avia-builder-el-first  avia-bg-style-scroll container_wrap fullsize'  ><div 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itemprop=\"thumbnailUrl\"  > <\/picture><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-n65pd4-43d7c8ea14e100ab4383b7e07140d702\">\n.flex_column.av-n65pd4-43d7c8ea14e100ab4383b7e07140d702{\nborder-radius:0px 0px 0px 0px;\npadding:0px 0px 0px 0px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='flex_column av-n65pd4-43d7c8ea14e100ab4383b7e07140d702 av_three_fourth  avia-builder-el-6  el_after_av_one_fourth  avia-builder-el-last  flex_column_div av-zero-column-padding  '     ><p>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-18wwadw-5592fcbfa1742298936af948e36d4ed9\">\n#top .av-special-heading.av-18wwadw-5592fcbfa1742298936af948e36d4ed9{\npadding-bottom:0;\nfont-size:20px;\n}\nbody .av-special-heading.av-18wwadw-5592fcbfa1742298936af948e36d4ed9 .av-special-heading-tag .heading-char{\nfont-size:25px;\n}\n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-18wwadw-5592fcbfa1742298936af948e36d4ed9 .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:20px;\n}\n.av-special-heading.av-18wwadw-5592fcbfa1742298936af948e36d4ed9 .av-subheading{\nfont-size:15px;\n}\n\n@media only screen and (min-width: 480px) and (max-width: 767px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-18wwadw-5592fcbfa1742298936af948e36d4ed9 .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n\n@media only screen and (max-width: 479px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-18wwadw-5592fcbfa1742298936af948e36d4ed9 .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='av-special-heading av-18wwadw-5592fcbfa1742298936af948e36d4ed9 av-special-heading-h4 blockquote modern-quote  avia-builder-el-7  el_before_av_textblock  avia-builder-el-first  av-inherit-size av-linked-heading'><h4 class='av-special-heading-tag '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >Melissa LaBonty<\/h4><div class=\"special-heading-border\"><div class=\"special-heading-inner-border\"><\/div><\/div><\/div><br \/>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-jrqymfzv-9d4e72c8497b684e9919d97b04a5abdd '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p class=\"pop-4 dig-4 bio-cred\"><em>Assistant Professor<\/em><br \/>\nPhD, Cell, Molecular, and Developmental Biology, Tufts University, 2018; BS, Biological Sciences, Ohio University, 2008<\/p>\n<p class=\"pop-4\">Dr. LaBonty is a cell and developmental biologist and geneticist who has used a variety of model organisms to study the genetic basis of diseases. She joined the Biology Department in 2021 and teaches courses in principles of biology, cell biology, and microbiology. Her research uses the invertebrate organism C. elegans to identify genetic interactions that play a role in the proper function of the primary cilia, a tiny cellular structure essential for sensing behaviors in C. elegans. She uses gene editing techniques to study how gene disruptions alter the structure and function of ciliated sensory neurons and behaviors linked to these neurons. Previously, Dr. LaBonty studied skeletal development and diseases in zebrafish and cellular pattern formation in the eyes of fruit flies, both while pursuing her graduate degree at Tufts University. She found her original love for working with C. elegans as an undergraduate at Ohio University, studying neurotransmitter synthesis pathways, and also as a research technician at Northeastern University, where she looked at mechanisms driving cell fate determination.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dig-4 heavy-man\">Selected Publications<\/p>\n<p class=\"pop-4\">Gerten L**, Edwards A**, Brennan M**, Reynolds Q**, Bernstein S**, Springer T**, <span class=\"heavy-man\">LaBonty M<\/span>. DiI dye-filling as a simple and inexpensive tool to visualize ciliated sensory neurons in C. elegans. (In review)<\/p>\n<p>Bentley-Ford MR*, <span class=\"heavy-man\">LaBonty M*<\/span>, Thomas HR, Haycraft CJ, Scott M**, LaFayette C, Croyle MJ, Andersen RS, Parant JM, Yoder BK. (2021) Evolutionarily conserved genetic interactions between nphp-4 and bbs-5 mutations exacerbate ciliopathy phenotypes. Genetics 220(1). doi: 10.1093\/genetics\/iyab209.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"heavy-man\">LaBonty M<\/span>, Mills J, Seliga AM, Johnson R, Sharma A, Yu F. (2019) Clinical Genetics with C. elegans. Proceedings of the Association for Biology Laboratory Education 40.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"heavy-man\">LaBonty M<\/span>, Pray N, Yelick PC. (2018) Injury of adult zebrafish expressing Acvr1lQ204D does not result in heterotopic ossification. Zebrafish 15(6): 536-545. doi: 10.1089\/zeb.2018.1611.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"heavy-man\">LaBonty M<\/span>, Yelick PC. (2018) Animal models of fibrodysplasia ossificans progressiva. Developmental Dynamics 247(2): 279-288. doi: 10.1002\/dvdy.24606.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"heavy-man\">LaBonty M<\/span>, Pray N, Yelick PC. (2017) A zebrafish model of human Fibrodysplasia Ossificans Progressiva. Zebrafish 14(4): 293-304. doi: 10.1089\/zeb.2016.1398.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"heavy-man\">LaBonty M<\/span>, Szmygiel C, Byrnes LE, Hughes S, Woollard A, Cram EJ. (2014) CACN-1\/Cactin Plays a Role in Wnt Signaling in C. elegans. PLoS ONE 9(7): e101945. doi:10.1371\/journal.pone.0101945.<\/p>\n<p class=\"pop-4\"><span class=\"heavy-man\">Office:<\/span>\u00a0SC 363<br \/>\n<span class=\"heavy-man\">Phone:<\/span> <a href=\"tel:+15415526788\">541.552.6788<\/a><br \/>\n<span class=\"heavy-man\">E-Mail:<\/span> <a href=\"mailto:labontym@sou.edu\">labontym@sou.edu<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section><\/p><\/div>\n\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><!-- close content main div --><\/div><\/div>\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_section-88aa1dce24bde71ba541926fa983a5ee\">\n.avia-section.av-av_section-88aa1dce24bde71ba541926fa983a5ee{\nbackground-color:#f3f3f3;\nbackground-image:unset;\n}\n<\/style>\n<div id='av_section_3' aria-label='SOU Business Home Page - Button to Application Page' class='avia-section av-av_section-88aa1dce24bde71ba541926fa983a5ee main_color avia-section-default avia-no-border-styling  avia-builder-el-9  el_after_av_section  el_before_av_section  academic-inquire avia-bg-style-scroll container_wrap fullsize'  ><div class='container av-section-cont-open' ><div class='template-page content  av-content-full alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-79300'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-m8tep4bv-d83e28691ecf9e7903c573c58cbd37e4\">\n#top .av-special-heading.av-m8tep4bv-d83e28691ecf9e7903c573c58cbd37e4{\npadding-bottom:20px;\nfont-size:28px;\n}\nbody .av-special-heading.av-m8tep4bv-d83e28691ecf9e7903c573c58cbd37e4 .av-special-heading-tag .heading-char{\nfont-size:25px;\n}\n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-m8tep4bv-d83e28691ecf9e7903c573c58cbd37e4 .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:28px;\n}\n.av-special-heading.av-m8tep4bv-d83e28691ecf9e7903c573c58cbd37e4 .av-subheading{\nfont-size:16px;\n}\n\n@media only screen and (min-width: 480px) and (max-width: 767px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-m8tep4bv-d83e28691ecf9e7903c573c58cbd37e4 .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n\n@media only screen and (max-width: 479px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-m8tep4bv-d83e28691ecf9e7903c573c58cbd37e4 .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='av-special-heading av-m8tep4bv-d83e28691ecf9e7903c573c58cbd37e4 av-special-heading-h2 custom-color-heading blockquote modern-quote modern-centered  avia-builder-el-10  el_before_av_buttonrow  avia-builder-el-first  av-inherit-size'><h2 class='av-special-heading-tag '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >Achieve Your Degree in Biology at SOU<\/h2><div class=\"special-heading-border\"><div class=\"special-heading-inner-border\"><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<div  class='avia-buttonrow-wrap av-av_buttonrow-5ef35acdc0e96f0e9eb052d035d5f79c avia-buttonrow-center  avia-builder-el-11  el_after_av_heading  avia-builder-el-last '>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_buttonrow_item-8a439ea9f509f0511cc2ca01b2424438\">\n#top #wrap_all .avia-button.av-av_buttonrow_item-8a439ea9f509f0511cc2ca01b2424438{\nmargin-bottom:5px;\nmargin-right:3px;\nmargin-left:3px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<a href='https:\/\/sou.edu\/admissions\/discover\/request-info\/'  class='avia-button av-av_buttonrow_item-8a439ea9f509f0511cc2ca01b2424438 avia-icon_select-no avia-size-large avia-color-theme-color'   aria-label=\"REQUEST MORE INFO\"><span class='avia_iconbox_title' >REQUEST MORE INFO<\/span><\/a>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_buttonrow_item-812bdad565f54e233426075c0717964c\">\n#top #wrap_all .avia-button.av-av_buttonrow_item-812bdad565f54e233426075c0717964c{\nmargin-bottom:5px;\nmargin-right:3px;\nmargin-left:3px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<a href='https:\/\/sou.edu\/admissions\/visit\/'  class='avia-button av-av_buttonrow_item-812bdad565f54e233426075c0717964c avia-icon_select-no avia-size-large avia-color-theme-color'   aria-label=\"VISIT\"><span class='avia_iconbox_title' >VISIT<\/span><\/a>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-av_buttonrow_item-5706119dd6426392ae44c31144ad812f\">\n#top #wrap_all .avia-button.av-av_buttonrow_item-5706119dd6426392ae44c31144ad812f{\nmargin-bottom:5px;\nmargin-right:3px;\nmargin-left:3px;\n}\n<\/style>\n<a href='\/admissions\/apply\/how-to-apply\/'  class='avia-button av-av_buttonrow_item-5706119dd6426392ae44c31144ad812f avia-icon_select-no avia-size-large avia-color-theme-color'   aria-label=\"APPLY NOW\"><span class='avia_iconbox_title' >APPLY NOW<\/span><\/a>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div><!-- close content main div --><\/div><\/div><div id='av_section_4' aria-label='SOU Biology Individual Faculty Page - Contact Section' class='avia-section av-237fsjt-a362ce757eda9a2516e2859044cc41f3 alternate_color avia-section-default avia-no-border-styling  avia-builder-el-12  el_after_av_section  avia-builder-el-last  avia-bg-style-scroll container_wrap fullsize'  ><div class='container av-section-cont-open' ><div class='template-page content  av-content-full alpha units'><div class='post-entry post-entry-type-page post-entry-79300'><div class='entry-content-wrapper clearfix'>\n\n<style type=\"text\/css\" data-created_by=\"avia_inline_auto\" id=\"style-css-av-m8rac4-9fb01e8f3c8988978f524eda8ee6a780\">\n#top .av-special-heading.av-m8rac4-9fb01e8f3c8988978f524eda8ee6a780{\npadding-bottom:0;\nfont-size:28px;\n}\nbody .av-special-heading.av-m8rac4-9fb01e8f3c8988978f524eda8ee6a780 .av-special-heading-tag .heading-char{\nfont-size:25px;\n}\n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-m8rac4-9fb01e8f3c8988978f524eda8ee6a780 .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:28px;\n}\n.av-special-heading.av-m8rac4-9fb01e8f3c8988978f524eda8ee6a780 .av-subheading{\nfont-size:16px;\n}\n\n@media only screen and (min-width: 480px) and (max-width: 767px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-m8rac4-9fb01e8f3c8988978f524eda8ee6a780 .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n\n@media only screen and (max-width: 479px){ \n#top #wrap_all .av-special-heading.av-m8rac4-9fb01e8f3c8988978f524eda8ee6a780 .av-special-heading-tag{\nfont-size:0.8em;\n}\n}\n<\/style>\n<div  class='av-special-heading av-m8rac4-9fb01e8f3c8988978f524eda8ee6a780 av-special-heading-h2 custom-color-heading blockquote modern-quote modern-centered  avia-builder-el-13  el_before_av_textblock  avia-builder-el-first  av-inherit-size'><h2 class='av-special-heading-tag '  itemprop=\"headline\"  >Contact Biology<\/h2><div class=\"special-heading-border\"><div class=\"special-heading-inner-border\"><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<section  class='av_textblock_section av-19b8ngp-b97213929895ea25183a0dbb8ab74553 '   itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"https:\/\/schema.org\/CreativeWork\" ><div class='avia_textblock'  itemprop=\"text\" ><p style=\"text-align: center\"><span class=\"heavy-man\">SOU Biology Program<\/span><br \/>\n1250 Siskiyou Blvd.<br \/>\nAshland, OR 97520<br \/>\n<a href=\"tel:+15415526796\">541.552.6796<\/a><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center\"><em>\u2013 Questions About Biology? \u2013<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div><\/section>\n<div  class='avia-button-wrap av-315zft-ac107d9600b8f1a6348ccdc9cca627ab-wrap avia-button-center  avia-builder-el-15  el_after_av_textblock  avia-builder-el-last '><a href='https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/biology\/contact\/'  class='avia-button av-315zft-ac107d9600b8f1a6348ccdc9cca627ab av-link-btn avia-icon_select-no avia-size-large avia-position-center avia-color-light'   aria-label=\"CONTACT US\"><span class='avia_iconbox_title' >CONTACT US<\/span><\/a><\/div>\n<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":0,"parent":57373,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-79300","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v26.0) - 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Serving the Southern Oregon and Northern California regions, SOU provides offers many higher education degree pathways, including: Major degree Undergraduate programs, Masters degree Graduate programs, Minor degrees, Certificate programs, and Micro-credential pathways. Southern Oregon University also provides Summer Youth Programs for students in the region from K-12, as well as continuing education programs through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI). Southern Oregon University welcomes students from abroad through SOU's International Programs, which also provides current SOU students opportunities to study away across the country and internationally through a multitude of partner universities. The beautiful SOU campus, nestled in the hills of Ashland, OR welcomes the surrounding community to come and enjoy many hosted events, including: sporting events at the SOU Raider Stadium and Lithia Motors Pavilion, theater performances hosted by the SOU Theatre program , musical performances at the SOU Musical Recital Hall, and art exhibitions at the Schneider Museum of Art and other campus art galleries. Southern Oregon University has many specialized programs which help lower tuition costs, grant in-state tuition, provide accelerated graduation, give opportunities to adult learners, and allow students to graduate with internships leading to job placement.","email":"provostsoffice@sou.edu","telephone":"541-552-6114","legalName":"Southern Oregon University","foundingDate":"1872-09-01"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#\/schema\/person\/d63857b3b310cf49180208a32b86d2bc","name":"Sean Glassford","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9d06c0ea896caf32907bcbdeae4e268bf90877fa2c09e7f919bd803e87634d1d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9d06c0ea896caf32907bcbdeae4e268bf90877fa2c09e7f919bd803e87634d1d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Sean Glassford"}}]}},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/79300","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=79300"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/79300\/revisions"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/57373"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sou.edu\/academics\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=79300"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}