Jenny Morton facts for kids

Anne Jennifer Morton, known as Jenny Morton, is a scientist from New Zealand. She is a neurobiologist, which means she studies the brain and nervous system. She focuses on diseases that damage the brain over time.

Since 1991, she has been a Fellow at Newnham College, Cambridge. A Fellow is like a senior member of a college. She has also been a Professor of Neurobiology at the University of Cambridge since 2009. Her main research now is on Huntington's disease. She uses sheep to learn more about this disease. Through her work, she even found out that sheep can recognise human faces!

Early Life and Education

Jenny Morton was born in Kaikohe, New Zealand. She grew up in the northern part of the country. She went to the University of Otago for her studies. In 1983, she earned her PhD, which is a high-level university degree. Her PhD was in physiology, the study of how living things work.

Later, she continued her studies at the University of Cambridge in England. She received a Master of Arts degree in 2009. In 2014, she was awarded a Doctor of Science degree from Cambridge. This is a very special degree given for important scientific work.

Academic Career

After finishing her PhD, Dr. Morton moved to England. She joined the Department of Pharmacology at the University of Cambridge. She worked there as a post-doctoral fellow. This means she was doing research after getting her PhD.

In 1991, she became a lecturer at the university. She also became a Fellow of Newnham College, Cambridge. Since 1995, she has helped guide students studying medicine at Newnham College. In 2005, she became a Reader in Experimental Neurobiology. A Reader is a senior academic position.

In 2009, she was made a Professor of Neurobiology. This is the highest academic rank. She was the first woman from New Zealand to become a professor at Cambridge. From 2009 to 2010, she had a special research fellowship. In 2015, she was a visiting scholar at the University of Auckland.

Amazing Discoveries

Professor Morton's research aims to understand how brain cells get damaged. She wants to find ways to stop or slow down this damage. Since 1993, she has focused on Huntington's disease. This is a serious brain disorder.

She first studied Huntington's disease using special mice. These mice were changed to have the disease. Later, she started using transgenic sheep. These sheep are also changed to help scientists study Huntington's disease. Using sheep helps because they are larger animals.

Her work with sheep led to another interesting discovery. Her team taught sheep to pick out a familiar face from pictures. This showed that sheep can actually recognise human faces! This is a big step in understanding how animals learn and remember.

Awards and Recognition

Professor Morton is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology (FRSB). This is an honour given to leading biologists.

Selected works