Team

Dr. Ekenstedt has been faculty at Purdue's College of Veterinary Medicine since 2017 and is the head of the Purdue Canine Genetics Laboratory. She has been part of the teams that discovered the mutations causing several neurological diseases in Leonbergers (one of which is also in Saint Bernards), and one form of progressive retinal atrophy (PRA) in Papillons, among others. She also teaches ungulate (horses and ruminants) gross anatomy to first year veterinary students. She received her Bachelor's of Science degree in Animal Science with a Chemistry minor from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls in 2001, then continued to the University of Minnesota to receive her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree in 2005. She also received her PhD in Comparative and Molecular Biosciences (canine genetics) from the University of Minnesota in 2010. Dr. Ekenstedt has two random-bred cats, Bo and Ethyl, who are littermates but despise each other. Her family also has Norwegian Fjord horses in her hometown of Cumberland, Wisconsin. A fun fact about Dr. Ekenstedt is that once her younger brother paid her $20 to not speak during an entire family dinner!

Jeanna has been a member of the Canine Genetics Lab since 2021. As a PhD student, she is currently looking into the genetics behind puppy immune response to vaccination as well as mutations that cause metabolic and dermatologic diseases. Jeanna received her Bachelor of Science degree in Animal Science with both Chemistry and Biology minors in 2016 from Purdue University. She also received her Master of Science degree in Biotechnology from Indiana University in 2017. Advancing canine health through scientific research is her career goal, and she is living her dream in the Canine Genetics Lab. Jeanna has always had an affinity for spots, which translates into having a Dalmatian and a dapple Miniature Dachshund running her home in Danville, Indiana. A fun fact about Jeanna is that she did the Disney College Program and worked at Disney World for a semester.

Madeline is a PhD student in the PULSe program. After finishing her year of rotations, she officially joined the lab in April 2023. Currently, she is working on a coat color project as well as several health-related projects. Madeline graduated from Butler University in 2022 with a Bachelor's of Science in Biology, as well as minors in Chemistry and German. She has had a passion for genetics since she drew her first Punnett squares in middle school and is excited to learn more and conduct research in the field of genetics. Madeline is also an animal lover and growing up she had a myriad of pets. At home in Saint Jacob, Illinois, her family has a 6 lb Chihuahua that she has had since she was 7 years old, a Japanese Chin, a Japanese Chin Pug mix, and a mixed breed hound dog. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling as much as she can, trying new foods, watching movies, reading, baking, and attending concerts and shows. Madeline’s fun fact is that once when travelling, her and her best friend accidentally climbed a mountain in Seoul because she misread the map. She says she has never walked up and then back down so many stairs in her life!

Jessica has been a member of Dr. Ekenstedt’s lab in some capacity for over four years. During this time, she has been involved in a number of projects examining diverse topics including dwarfism and the prevalence of hereditary bleeding disorders (Factor VII Deficiency and Von Willebrand’s Disease Type 1). She has also used commercial genetic testing data to investigate the impact of direct-to-consumer testing on breeding program decisions and animal welfare. Jessica grew up in Morton Grove, Illinois and moved to Indiana for college. She got her Bachelors of Science in Genetics from Purdue University with a minor in Classical Studies (2021) and continued on at Purdue to reach her Masters in Basic Medical Sciences (2023). While she has no pets right now, Jessica looks forward to adopting a kitten sidekick for her next adventure: heading to Houston for a Masters in Genetic Counseling! One fun fact about Jessica is that according to her own genetic testing results, she shouldn’t have been born with red hair!