Bio

2024 GES Minor Fellow

John Britt is a Ph.D. student in the Genetics program after graduating from North Carolina State University with a Bachelor of Science in Genetics. He currently is a member of the Rao lab, and works on understanding the roles of different signaling pathways and nutrients in trophoblast differentiation and preservation of the trophoblast stem cell niche, along with other research projects such as developing a macaque-based model of early embryonic development and understanding trophoblast stem cell plasticity. During his time as a Ph.D. student, John Britt has been awarded several different fellowships and grants including the Molecular Biotechnology Training Program (MBTP), the Young Research Scholars (YS) summer grant, and the Genetics and Genomics Academy Summer Teamwork mini-grant. He has also been an active member of several groups on campus, such as the Genetics and Genomic Academy (GGA), the Comparative Medicine Institute, and the GSA.

Publications

• Derivation of human trophoblast stem cells from placentas at birth , Journal of Biological Chemistry (2025)
• A quantitative image analysis platform for assessing trophoblast differentiation , Placenta (2024)
• Identification of a gene promoter active in Lucilia sericata larval salivary glands using a rapid transient expression assay , Insect Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (2024)
• Laminin switches terminal differentiation fate of human trophoblast stem cells under chemically defined culture conditions , Journal of Biological Chemistry (2023)