Jennifer Couget

Jennifer Couget consistently builds her life sciences career around the forefront of cutting-edge genomics technology and the family of ‘-omics’ tools. With a strong foundation in traditional molecular biology, she has worked in both public and private life sciences research for more than two decades. Her research has centered on developing novel molecular pathology assays, identifying and validating potential drug targets, and the challenges of next-generation sequencing, all of which have benefited from the continuous metamorphosis of PCR. The ability to detect a single molecule of DNA has improved dramatically in parallel with advances in synthetic biology, engineering, and optics. Preparation of large sample inputs and reagent volumes have been replaced by single cells or DNA droplets in nanoliter reactions with the ability to reliably and reproducibly detect single base pair DNA mutations and variations in the transcriptome. As one of the first people to use real-time PCR, Jennifer provides insights into how to use the advantages of RT-PCR to establish critical data for pilot studies, marker identification, mapping single-cell microenvironments, clinical diagnostics, and quality assurance and control data for the validation of next generation sequencing applications.

Jennifer received her B.A. in molecular biology and biochemistry from Wesleyan University in Middletown, CT. She received her Sc.M. from The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in the fields of immunology and infectious diseases. She continues to pursue graduate work independently focusing her interests in bioinformatics, biology, and business. She is recognized for her contributions to peer-reviewed research, undertaking high-risk, high-reward endeavors, and her dedicated teaching and collaborative work ethic. She is passionate about animal welfare issues and co-founded Phinney’s Friends, a non-profit organization dedicated to keeping people and their pets together through times of crisis.