Robert Braun, PhD
$150,000 / 2 years
Awarded November 2020

Robert Braun, PhD

The Jackson Laboratory
Bar Harbor, Maine

About
​Robert’s lab is driven by a passion to understand the cell biological basis of gamete (sperm and egg) development. They study how germline stem cells balance self-renewal with differentiation. Stem cell self-renewal at the expense of differentiation can cause germ cell tumors while differentiation at the expense of self-renewal can cause sterility. Their long-term goal is to understand the mechanisms that regulate germline stem cell fate. Other research interests include understanding the molecular function of the hormone testosterone in spermatogenesis.

Our Grant
​MCI is supporting Robert’s lab and their work towards developing a novel form of male contraception alongside collaborators at Weill Cornell School of Medicine. Their project focuses on using video capture and artificial intelligence to assess the efficacy of a short-acting male contraceptive.

Press Releases​
Jackson Laboratory Researcher Receives $150,000 to Develop Male Contraceptive
January 8, 2021

MCI Grantee: The Jackson Laboratory

Publications
Balbach, Melanie, Vera Beckert, Jan N. Hansen, and Dagmar Wachten, ‘Shedding Light on the Role of CAMP in Mammalian Sperm Physiology’, Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology, 468 (2018), 111–20 <https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mce.2017.11.008>