Wendy Hood, PhD
Rouse Life Science Building 224; Lab: Rouse Life Science Building 234
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Short Bio
Dr. Wendy Hood is an evolutionary physiologist, professor, and curator of mammals at Auburn University. She has published extensively on nutritional constraints on lactation and reproductive performance, as well as on the evolution of milk composition. The current focus areas of her lab group are: 1) Understanding how mitochondria and their bioenergetic capacity impact intraspecific variation in life history and performance. 2) Developing research models that recapitulate phenotypes expressed in wild populations. She has received grant funding from the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health and is a recipient of the prestigious NSF CAREER award. Her research group has studied numerous species from diverse taxonomic groups, and her team currently uses mice (laboratory and wild-derived Mus), lab rats, Tigriopus copepods, migratory and non-migratory birds, and various butterflies as their research models.
Education
BA University of California, Santa Cruz 1993
PhD Boston University 2001
Professional Experience
- 2022–Present. Professor, Auburn University
- 2020–Present. Curator of Mammals, Auburn University Museum of Natural History
- 2016–2022. Associate Professor, Auburn University
- 2012–2016. Assistant Professor, Auburn University
- 2007–2011. Assistant Research Professor, Auburn University
- 2002–2007. Assistant Professor, Coastal Carolina University
Innovation
Dr. Hood’s lab focuses on the mechanistic basis of individual variation in performance and life history, with three main areas of inquiry:
Mitochondrial Function, Oxidative Stress and Life History. The lab investigates the tradeoff between reproduction and longevity across multiple species, including ground squirrels, mice, rats, house finches and copepods. Key findings suggest that reproduction does not appear to negatively affect survival or mitochondrial function, and that reactive oxygen species exposure interacts with life history patterns through mitochondrial changes. The lab has also published theoretical work on mitochondrial hormesis and morphological variation as drivers of life-history tradeoffs.
Milk Composition and Lactation. Hood and her lab group have characterized milk composition across multiple mammalian species, demonstrated its impact on offspring survival and completed the first phylogenetically corrected cross-vertebrate analysis of milk composition. Additional work has examined how maternal diet shapes milk microbiota and how lactation affects cellular metabolism and mitochondrial function in humans.
Phenotype and Experimental Environment. Because animal phenotypes reflect gene-environment interactions, accurate characterization of phenotypes requires both genetically diverse animals and naturalistic conditions. The lab uses wild-derived house mice and semi-natural enclosures for many studies and is currently assessing whether mouse phenotypes in these settings more closely resemble wild mice than laboratory mice. In collaboration with Dr. Aliva Flores in the Department of Biological Sciences, the lab is also investigating whether wild-derived mice could provide a strong model for vaccine development. In collaboration with Dr. Arlan Richardson at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, the lab is evaluating the use of semi-natural enclosures for assessing aging processes in rats.
