Jukka Jernvall

Jukka Jernvall is a professor of developmental and evolutionary biology at the University of Helsinki, Finland and professor at Stony Brook University, NY, USA. Paleontological field studies in Turkey directed his interest in the mammalian dentition and to the interplay between developmental biology and ecology. His dissertation research focused on the developmental mechanisms generating mammalian molar tooth diversity and he received a PhD in Zoology from University of Helsinki in 1995. Most of his work has contributed to the current understanding of the development and evolution of mammalian teeth, including the discovery of the secondary enamel knots as signaling centers in the regulation of tooth shape. His team has developed several methods from computer modeling of organ development to three-dimensional analysis of biological shape development and function. This research uses mutant mice in the laboratory, evolutionary diversity found in the fossil record, and wild primate populations in the rainforests of Madagascar. The current research is focuses on developmental models that best explain evolution beyond model organisms. Jernvall is an elected member of the Finnish Society of Sciences and Letters and the Finnish Academy of Science and Letters and was recently elected as an Academy Professor (Finland), beginning in 2010.