[3] Huttenlocher joined the faculty at the University of Wisconsin–Madison (UW-M) in 1999 with a joint appointment in the Departments of Pediatrics and Pharmacology, and as an associate director of the Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP).
By 2005, her research team had identified a novel pathway that turned out to be critical for cell migration and chemotaxis, involving intracellular proteolysis by the calcium-dependent protease calpain.
[17] In May 2020, Huttenlocher was named the Anna Ruth Brummett Professor of Pediatrics and Medical Microbiology and Immunology Chair in honor of her "major contributions to the advancement of knowledge.
"[19] Huttenlocher's recent research projects include "Cell migration and wound repair"[20] and "Imaging immunometabolism in live animals during host defense.
The book centers on the intriguing life story of the discoverer of synaptic pruning, her father Peter Huttenlocher, and also discusses the physician-scientist career path.