Sally P. Leys

Assistant Professor

Canada Research Chair in Evolutionary and Developmental Biology

Department of Biological Sciences
The University of Alberta
Edmonton, Alberta
Canada, T6G 2E9

Office: ESB 1-58
Telephone: (780) 492-6629
Fax: (780) 492-9234; Email: sleys@ualberta.ca

I am interested in the evolution and development of coordinating systems in basal metazoans. In my lab we take diverse approaches to study how multicellular animals acquired muscle and nervous systems, and from which cell layers these components arise during ontogeny. Our subjects are sponges (the most basal metazoan group) and cnidarians. Future work will include placozoans. We integrate field and laboratory studies into a conceptual framework, and use a variety of approaches including: field experiments using an unmanned submersible to study feeding and reproductive ecology; molecular and physiological studies of ion channels; in vitro studies using video microscopy of contractile and feeding behaviours; calcium imaging of signaling between individual cells; and molecular and morphological studies of genes involved in muscle, nerve or germ layer formation using in situ hybridization and electron microscopy.

Publications

Teaching
Zool 303 Animal Developmental Biology
Biol 361 Marine Science

Graduate Students
Glen Elliott
Gabrielle Tompkins

Student Projects available

Undergraduate students

Collaborators' zone

Links to Websites of Interest:

Khoyatan Marine Laboratory: Sponge Gardens

Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre

Sponge Reefs