Johanna Lemons

Staff Scientist

Johanna began her scientific career as an undergraduate researcher in an inorganic chemistry lab but discovered a lasting fascination with metabolism during her senior-year biochemistry course. She pursued her Ph.D. at Princeton University with Hilary Coller and Josh Rabinowitz, examining the metabolic foundations of cellular quiescence. For her postdoctoral work at the University of Utah, Johanna joined Jared Rutter’s group to investigate the functions of previously uncharacterized mitochondrial proteins.

She later transitioned to the USDA Agricultural Research Service, where she led research on how dietary nutrients and environmental contaminants affect the gut microbiome and intestinal epithelium, alongside collaborative studies on inflammatory bowel disease with colleagues at the University of Pennsylvania.

Johanna is now a Staff Scientist in the Aird Lab, where she focuses on uncovering how metabolic programs regulate cell-cycle exit decisions.

Contact: jlemons@wistar.org