Anne Jennifer Morton, , known as Jenny Morton, is a New Zealand

neurobiologist A neuroscientist (or neurobiologist) is a scientist specializing in neuroscience that deals with the anatomy and function of neurons, neural circuits, and glia, and their behavioral, biological, and psychological roles in health and disease. ...

and academic, specialising in

neurodegenerative diseases A neurodegenerative disease is caused by the progressive loss of neurons, in the process known as neurodegeneration. Neuronal damage may also ultimately result in their death. Neurodegenerative diseases include amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, mul ...

. She has been a

Fellow A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...

Newnham College, Cambridge Newnham College is a women's constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college was founded in 1871 by a group organising Lectures for Ladies, members of which included philosopher Henry Sidgwick and suffragist campaigner Millicen ...

, since 1991 and a

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...

of Neurobiology at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

since 2009. Her current research is focused on

Huntington's disease Huntington's disease (HD), also known as Huntington's chorea, is an incurable neurodegenerative disease that is mostly Genetic disorder#Autosomal dominant, inherited. It typically presents as a triad of progressive psychiatric, cognitive, and ...

, and she is using sheep as a large animal model for the disease. This research has led her to discover that sheep can recognise human faces.

Early life and education

Morton was born in

Kaikohe Kaikohe is the seat of the Far North District of New Zealand, situated on State Highway 12 about from Auckland, and about from Whangārei. It is the largest inland town and highest community above sea level in the Northland Region. With a pop ...

, New Zealand, and was raised in the country's

Far North District The Far North District is the northernmost Territorial authorities of New Zealand, territorial authority district of New Zealand, consisting of the northern part of the Northland Peninsula in the North Island. It stretches from North Cape (New ...

. She undertook doctoral research in

physiology Physiology (; ) is the science, scientific study of function (biology), functions and mechanism (biology), mechanisms in a life, living system. As a branches of science, subdiscipline of biology, physiology focuses on how organisms, organ syst ...

at the

University of Otago The University of Otago () is a public university, public research university, research collegiate university based in Dunedin, Otago, New Zealand. Founded in 1869, Otago is New Zealand's oldest university and one of the oldest universities in ...

, completing her Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) degree in 1983. On 21 February 2009, the

admitted her to

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

(MA Cantab) status. She was awarded a

Doctor of Science A Doctor of Science (; most commonly abbreviated DSc or ScD) is a science doctorate awarded in a number of countries throughout the world. Africa Algeria and Morocco In Algeria, Morocco, Libya and Tunisia, all universities accredited by the s ...

(ScD) degree by the University of Cambridge in 2014.

Academic career

Having completed her doctorate, Morton moved to England to join the Department of Pharmacology,

as a

post-doctoral fellow A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). Postdocs most commonly, but not always, have a temporary acade ...

. In 1991, she was appointed a lecturer at the university and elected a

. Since 1995, she has been the director of studies in medicine and veterinary medicine at Newnham College. In 2005, she was made a Reader in Experimental Neurobiology in the Department of Pharmacology. In 2009, she was appointed

of Neurobiology in the Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience. She is the first New Zealand woman to be appointed to a professorship at Cambridge. From October 2009 to September 2010, she held a

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

Leverhulme Trust The Leverhulme Trust () is a large national grant-making organisation in the United Kingdom. It was established in 1925 under the will of the 1st Viscount Leverhulme (1851–1925), with the instruction that its resources should be used to cover ...

Senior Research Fellowship. In 2015, she was the Visiting Seelye Fellow at the

University of Auckland The University of Auckland (; Māori: ''Waipapa Taumata Rau'') is a public research university based in Auckland, New Zealand. The institution was established in 1883 as a constituent college of the University of New Zealand. Initially loc ...

Research

Morton's current research focuses on "understanding the mechanisms underlying

neurodegeneration A neurodegenerative disease is caused by the progressive loss of neurons, in the process known as neurodegeneration. Neuronal damage may also ultimately result in their cell death, death. Neurodegenerative diseases include amyotrophic lateral sc ...

and on developing strategies to delay or prevent the death of neurones in injured or degenerating brain". She has specialised in

since 1993. Having undertaken research into Huntington's using

transgenic mice A genetically modified mouse, genetically engineered mouse model (GEMM) or transgenic mouse is a mouse (''Mus musculus'') that has had its genome altered through the use of genetic engineering techniques. Genetically modified mice are commonly use ...

, she moved into using transgenic sheep as a large animal model of Huntington's disease. Morton's research with sheep has also led to an interest in measuring their learning and memory. Her team have been able to teach sheep to choose a familiar face over unfamiliar one when presented with two photographs, which has led to the discovery that sheep can recognise human faces.

Honours

Morton is an elected

Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology Fellowship of the Royal Society of Biology (FRSB), previously Fellowship of the Society of Biology (FSB), is an award and fellowship granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Biology has adjudged to have made a "prominent contribution to t ...

(FRSB).

Selected works

* * * * * *

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Morton, Jenny Living people Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century New Zealand biologists New Zealand neuroscientists New Zealand women neuroscientists Fellows of Newnham College, Cambridge Fellows of the Royal Society of Biology University of Otago alumni People from Kaikohe Alumni of the University of Cambridge 20th-century New Zealand biologists