cell close upOur program provides training for  Doctoral candidates.

Research training is available in the laboratories of participating Faculty Trainers who are based in both East Lansing and Grand Rapids. Our  Faculty are world-renowned for their research and offer opportunities in the latest cutting-edge research, using a variety of experimental model systems.

There are 4 major areas of specialization:

  • Gonad and Gamete Biology
  • Early Embryo Development
  • Reproductive Tract Biology and Gynecological Pathologies
  • Environmental Factors in Reproduction

In addition, the program provides trainees with competencies in:

  • Hypothesis-driven Basic, Applied, Clinical, and Translational Research,
  • Use of a variety of model organisms in reproductive biology research
  • Cutting edge methodologies in developmental biology and embryology, molecular and cellular biology, reproductive physiology, genome editing, epigenetics, and bioinformatics/genomics biology
  • Skills for successful professional development, such as oral communication, grant writing, job interviewing skills, mentoring, laboratory management, alternate career awareness, intellectual property and entrepreneurship, and teaching.

Doctoral candidates will pursue degrees through one of the six Biomedical Sciences (BMS) programs (Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Cell & Molecular Biology, Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, Genetics, Pharmacology & Toxicology, and Physiology), through Interdisciplinary and Dual Degree Programs (MD/PhD, DO/PhD), College of Natural Sciences

Interdisciplinary Program, Quantitative Biology, Food Science/Environmental Toxicology), or through departmental/other programs (Animal Science, Biomedical Engineering, Comparative Medicine and Integrative Biology (CMIB), Epidemiology and Biostatistics, and Neuroscience). Applications to the BMS Program can be made directly at BioMolecular Science Website. Information about other graduate programs is also available online.

Applicants should emphasize their preference for training opportunities in the Reproductive and Developmental Sciences when applying to these programs.

Participating Department or Program

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MSU researchers reveal findings from a dual-purpose grant from the USDA and NIH to study assisted reproductive technologies for cattle and humans

In a first-of-its-kind study, researchers at Michigan State University are studying ovarian stimulation protocols in cattle and in vitro fertilization in humans simultaneously. The team found the standard practice of using high levels of hormones to stimulate ovaries is linked to negative outcomes in live birth rates in women and disruptions to ovarian genes in cattle.

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Dr. Hanne Hoffmann’s article entitled “Low CLOCK and CRY2 in 2nd Trimester Human Maternal Blood and Risk of Preterm Birth a Nested Case Control Study,” published in the October 2021 issue of Biology of Reproduction -  has been selected as Biology of Reproduction’s most popular research article of 2021 based on Altmetric score. She and her group received the “2021 BoR Most Popular Research Article Award” at the SSR annual meeting held in Spokane, Washington in July 2022.

Human Medicine Building GR

A large, prospective study found that women with endometriosis may have a higher risk of stroke compared to women without the chronic inflammatory condition, according to new research published today in Stroke, the peer-reviewed flagship journal of the American Stroke Association, a division of the American Heart Association.

Endometriosis (abnormal growth of endometrial-like tissue outside the uterus) is estimated to affect approximately 10% of reproductive aged women in the U.S., according to study authors. Previous research found that women with endometriosis are at greater risk of cardiovascular diseases such as heart attack, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

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