Cecilia Moens is an Affiliate Professor at the Division of Basic Science at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. Her research focuses on understanding how genes control cell-cell interactions that underlie development and regeneration of neural circuits within complex four-dimensional environments like the embryonic brain. A central aspect of her work is seeking to comprehend the mechanisms of neural topographic map formation in the context of the vagus nerve, which serves as the main route for neuronal communication between visceral organs and the brain, alongside the events of axon guidance. Moens utilizes transparent zebrafish embryos, which allow for exquisite accessibility to genetic manipulation and high-resolution imaging of single neurons and growing axons in vivo. She has an extensive academic background, having received her B.Sc. in Biology from York University in 1987, followed by a Ph.D. in Medical Molecular Genetics from the University of Toronto in 1993. After completing her post-doctoral training at the Charles Kimmel Institute of Neuroscience at the University of Oregon, she joined the faculty at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in 1998.