Dr. Julie Merkle

(she/her/hers)

Associate Professor/Biology
Co-Director of the Eykamp Center for Teaching Excellence

Room 219, Koch Center for Engineering and Science
812-488-5026
jm757@evansville.edu

Specializations

• Developmental Biology
• Cell and Molecular Biology
• Stem Cell Biology
• Genetics

Education and Training

• BS in Biology, Susquehanna University, Selinsgrove, PA
• PhD in Cell and Developmental Biology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN
• Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Molecular Biology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ

Courses Taught

• BIOL 119 Introductory Biology: Molecular Perspectives
• BIOL 220 Biological Perspectives on Sex and Gender
• BIOL 331 Genetics
• BIOL 340 Cell and Molecular Biology
• BIOL 425 Developmental Biology
• ID 106 Excelling in Mathematics and Science

Research Interests

Dr. Merkle’s research focuses on addressing this basic developmental and cell biological question of cell fate during animal development. This research connects the fields of genetics, developmental biology, cancer biology and cell biology and involves the use of microscopy, molecular biology techniques (e.g., RNAi, cloning, CRISPR), gene expression analyses, and genetic and biochemical assays. Research projects involve investigations of cell fate, cell cycle regulation, protein trafficking, and DNA damage repair using the ovary of the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, as a model system. Further elucidation of these processes will allow for a better understanding of these pathways during animal development and fertility, as well as provide valuable insight into potential therapeutic targets and disease mechanisms.

Corinne Croslyn and Arjun Kharel

Grants and Awards

• UExplore Undergraduate Research Grants, 2019-2025
• Class of 1961 Faculty Fellowship Award, University of Evansville, 2022
• Outstanding Teaching of the Year Award, University of Evansville, 2021

Selected publications

(#Undergraduate author; *Equal contribution; †Corresponding author)

• Google Scholar link
• Peer-reviewed research publications:
  • Monti D L, Gill JC, Adair TL, Adams SD, et al. (2024). An inclusive Research Education Community (iREC) Model to Facilitate Undergraduate Science Education Reform. Frontiers in Education, 9, 1442318. PMID: 39686966. 3389/feduc.2024.1442318
  • Hanauer D, Alvey R, An P, et al. (2024). The Professional Identity of STEM Faculty as Instructors of Course-based Research Experiences. Frontiers in Education, 9, 1442306. PMID: 39686967. 3389/feduc.2024.1442306
  • Hanauer DI, Zhang T, Graham MJ, et al. (2023) Models of Classroom Assessment for Course-Based Research Experiences. Frontiers in Education 8:1279921. PMID: 39687267. 3389/feduc.2023.1279921
  • Merkle JA, Devergne O, Kelly SM, Croonquist PA, Evans CJ, Hwalek MA, Straub VL, Hamill DR, Piester A, Puthoff DP, Saville KJ, Siders JL, Villanueva Gonzalez ZJ, Wittke-Thompson JK, Bieser KL, Stamm J, Vrailas-Mortimer AD, & Kagey JD ^†. (2023) Fly-CURE, a Multi-institutional CURE using Drosophila, Increases Students’ Confidence, Sense of Belonging, and Persistence in Research. Journal of Microbiology and Biology Education. PMID: 38107988. 1128/jmbe.00245-22
  • Merkle JA ^†. (2023) Dissection, Fixation, and Standard Staining of Adult Drosophila In Drosophila Oogenesis (Vol. 2626). Springer Nature. PMID: 36715899. 10.1007/978-1-0716-2970-3_3 
  • Hinnant TD, Merkle JA* ^†, Ables ET* ^†. 2020. Coordinating Proliferation, Polarity, and Cell Fate in the Drosophila Female Germline. Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology, 8, 19. PMID: 32117961. org/10.3389/fcell.2020.00019
  • Merkle JA, Wittes J, Schüpbach T ^†. 2020. Signaling between somatic follicle cells and the germline patterns the egg and embryo of Drosophila. In Current Topics in Developmental Biology (Vol. 140, pp. 55–86). Academic Press. PMID: 32591083. org/10.1016/bs.ctdb.2019.10.004.
  • Neitzel LR, Broadus MR, Zhang N, Sawyer L, Wallace HA, Merkle JA, Jodoin JN, Sitaram P, Crispi EE, Rork W, Lee LA, Pan D, Gould KL, Page-McCaw A, Lee E. 2018. Characterizationof a cdc14 null allele in Drosophila melanogaster. Biology Open, 7(7), 1-9. PMID: 29945873. org/10.1242/bio.035394
  • Wallace HA*, Merkle JA*, Yu MC ^#, Berg TG, Lee E, Bosco G, Lee LA. 2014. TRIP/NOPO E3 ubiquitin ligase promotes ubiquitylation of DNA polymerase. Development, 141(6), 1332–1341. PMID: 24553286. org/10.1242/dev.101196
  • Sitaram P, Merkle JA, Lee E, Lee LA. 2014. Asunder is required for dynein localization and dorsal fate determination during Drosophila Developmental Biology, 386(1), 42–52. PMID: 24333177. doi.org/10.1016/j.ydbio.2013.12.004
  • Merkle JA, Rickmyre JL, Garg A, Loggins EB, Jodoin JN, Lee E, Wu LP, Lee LA. 2009. no poles encodes a predicted E3 ubiquitin ligase required for early embryonic development of Drosophila. Development, 136(3), 449–459. PMID: 19141674. org/10.1242/dev.027599
• Peer-reviewed publications from Genetics (BIOL 331): (UE students are underlined.)
  • Nowaskie RR ^#, Kitch A ^#, Adams A ^#, Anandaraj A ^#, Apawan E ^#, Bañuelos L ^#, Betz CJ ^#, Bogunia JM ^#, Buechlein N ^#, Burns MR ^#, Collier HA ^#, Collins Z ^#, Combs K ^#, Dakarian VD ^#, Daniel A ^#, De Jesus III CM ^#, Erickson JD ^#, Estrada B ^#, Estrada K ^#, Fields S ^#, Gabriel M ^#, Garcia RM ^#, Gitamo S ^#, Granath E ^#, Hardin SN ^#, Hattling E ^#, Henriquez AVL ^#, Hernandez D ^#, Johnson L ^#, Kim AH ^#, Kolley LK ^#, Larue KM ^#, Lockwood E ^#, Longoria N ^#, Lopez C ^#, Lopez-Roca Fernandez RC ^#, Lozano S ^#, Manthie C ^#, May T ^#, Mehrzad Z ^#, Mendoza I ^#, Mohan S ^#, Mounthachak C ^#, Muyizere M ^#, Myers MR ^#, Newton J ^#, Nwawueze A ^#, Paredes AJ ^#, Pezdek MN ^#, Phat Nguyen H ^#, Pobuda N ^#, Sadat S ^#, Sailor JJ ^#, Santiago D ^#, Sbarbaro M ^#, Schultz III DE ^#, Senobari AN ^#, Shouse EM ^#, Snarski SM ^#, Solano E ^#, Solis Campos N ^#, Stewart E ^#, Szczepaniak J ^#, Tejeda M ^#, Teoli DF ^#, Tran M ^#, Trivedi N ^#, Uribe Aristizabal L ^#, Vargas BZ ^#, Walker III KW ^#, Wasiqi J ^#, Wong J ^#, Zachrel A ^#, Shah HP, Small E, Watts CT, Croonquist P, Devergne O, Jones AK, Taylor EE, Kagey JD ^†, Merkle JA. (2023) clifford ^4.1 , an allele of CG1603, causes tissue overgrowth in the Drosophila melanogaster eye. microPublication Biology. PMID: 37680216. 10.17912/micropub.biology.000936
  • Talley EM ^#*, Watts CT ^#*, Aboyer S ^#, Adamson MG ^#, Akoto HAB ^#, Altemus H ^#, Avella PJ ^#, Bailey R ^#, Bell ER ^#, Bell KL ^#, Breneman K ^#, Burkhart JS ^#, Chanley LJ ^#, Cook SS ^#, DesLaurier MT ^#, Dorsey TR ^#, Doyle CJ ^#, Egloff ME ^#, Fasawe AS ^#, Garcia KK ^#, Graves NP ^#, Gray TK ^#, Gustafson EM ^#, Hall MJ ^#, Hayes JD ^#, Holic LJ ^#, Jarvis BA ^#, Klos PS ^#, Kritzmire S ^#, Kuzovko L ^#, Lainez E ^#, McCoy S ^#, Mierendorf JC ^#, Neri NA ^#, Neville CR ^#, Osborn K ^#, Parker K ^#, Parks ME ^#, Peck K ^#, Pitt R ^#, Platta ME ^#, Powell B ^#, Rodriguez K ^#, Ruiz C ^#, Schaefer MN ^#, Shields AB ^#, Smiley JB ^#, Stauffer B ^#, Straub D ^#, Sweeney JL ^#, Termine KM ^#, Thomas B ^#, Toth SD ^#, Veile TR ^#, Walker KS ^#, Webster PN ^#, Woodard BJ ^#, Yoder QL ^#, Young MK ^#, Zeedyk ML ^#, Ziegler LN ^#, Bieser KL, Puthoff DP, Stamm J, Vrailas-Mortimer AD, Kagey JD ^†, Merkle JA. 2021. Genetic mapping and phenotypic analysis of shot ^3.2 in Drosophila melanogaster. microPublication Biology. PMID: 34278244. 10.17912/micropub.biology.000418.
  • Vrailas-Mortimer AD, Aggarwal N ^#, Ahmed NN ^#, Alberts IM ^#, Alhawasli M ^#, Aljerdi IA ^#, Allen BM ^#, Alnajar AM ^#, Anderson MA ^#, Armstong R ^#, Avery CC ^#, Avila EJ ^#, Baker TN ^#, Basardeh S ^#, Bates NA ^#, Beidas FN ^#, Bosler AC ^#, Brewer DM ^#, Buenaventura RS ^#, Burrell NJL ^#, Cabrera-Lopez AP ^#, Cervantes-Gonzalez AB ^#, Cezar RP ^#, Coronel J ^#, Croslyn C ^#, Damery KR ^#, Diaz-Alavez L ^#, Dixit NP ^#, Duarte DL ^#, Emke AR ^#, English K ^#, Eshun AA ^#, Esterly SR ^#, Estrada AJ ^#, Feng M ^#, Freund MM ^#, Garcia N ^#, Ghotra CS ^#, Ghyasi H ^#, Hale CSA ^#, Hulsman L ^#, Jamerson L ^#, Jones AK ^#, Kuczynski M ^#, Lacey- Kennedy TN ^#, Lee MJ ^#, Mahjoub T ^#, Mersinger MC ^#, Muckerheide AD ^#, Myers DW ^#, Nielsen K ^#, Nosowicz PJ ^#, Nunez JA ^#, Ortiz AC ^#, Patel TT ^#, Perry NN ^#, Poser WS ^#, Puga DM ^#, Quam C ^#, Quintana-Lopez P ^#, Rennerfeldt P ^#, Reyes NM ^#, Rines IG ^#, Roberts C ^#, Robinson DB ^#, Rossa KM ^#, Ruhlmann GJ ^#, Schmidt J ^#, Sherwood JR ^#, Shonoda DH ^#, Soellner H ^#, Torrez JC ^#, Velide M ^#, Weinzapfel Z ^#, Word AC ^#, Bieser KL, Merkle JA, Stamm JC, Tillett RL, Kagey JD ^†. 2021. 2.16 is a non-lethal modifier of the Dark82 mosaic eye phenotype in Drosophila melanogaster. microPublication Biology. PMID: 33474526. 10.17912/micropub.biology.000359
• Peer-reviewed publications from Phage Genomics (BIOL 255): (UE students are underlined.)
  • Stamm J, Merkle JA, Abernathy A, Ackerman E, Brown J, Harris A, Hoffman K, Hoskins A, Jahn A, Jones N, Kitch A, Mathavan N, Rose N, Taylor J. (2024) Complete genome sequences of Streptomyces griseus phages Spelly and Phredrick. Microbiol Resour Announc. 13(1):e0104923. PMID: 38112473. 1128/mra.01049-23

Recent Lab Alumni

• Arjun Kharel – PhD student at Northwestern University
• Skip Maas – PhD student at University of Colorado Boulder
• Corinne Croslyn – PhD student at Northwestern University
• Anthony Kluemper – MD student at Indiana University School of Medicine
• Katie Brown – Physician Assistant, University of Evansville
• Darcie Smith
• McKenzie Young – DO student at Marian University College of Osteopathic Medicine
• Lingshuang (Sylvia) Lu
• Devyn Schaetzle
• Amanda Shields – DO student at Marian University College of Osteopathic Medicine
• Charlie (Watts) White
• Jenna Zirkelbach – MD student at Indiana University School of Medicine
• Austin Mula
• Makayla Gomperts – MD student at Indiana University School of Medicine
• Nick Buechlein – DDS student at Indiana University School of Dentistry
• Megan Atkins
• Danielle Monroe
• Josie Pagano, Physician Assistant student, University of Evansville