Previous Trainees

Post-doctoral Fellows

Josh Buffington: 2023 – 2025 (Ullman Lab, Department of Neuroscience)

My research examines language abilities in the aging brain, with an emphasis on understanding how hippocampal atrophy and mitigating behaviors (e.g., exercise, sleep) impact language in older adults.

Eleni Hughes: 2023 – 2025 (Levi Lab, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular & Cellular Biology)

I am studying the roles of nicotinamide riboside and estrogen related receptors (ERRs) in brain and
kidney health in diabetic mouse models. Through this research, I have been trained on various traditional biological experimental methods, including western blot, immunohistochemistry, immunofluorescence, and RT- qPCR. Additionally, I have been working to apply my physics knowledge towards advanced techniques in imaging and biophysics, such as Stimulated Raman Spectroscopy (SRS), Stimulated Emission Depletion (STED) imaging, and various methods of computational image analysis. I have been leading a project related to nicotinamide riboside’s efficacy in improving brain health via mitigation of inflammation in a diabetic mouse model, and we hope to publish a manuscript on this topic by the end of this summer.

Kyle Kihn: 2024 – 2026 (Brelidze Lab, Department of Pharmacology & Physiology)

Dr. Kyle Kihn’s postdoctoral research focuses on integrating molecular dynamics (MD) simulations,
AI/ML methods, and experimental validation to investigate ion channel regulation and identify novel drugcandidates. His primary project involves characterizing the structural dynamics of KCNH family ion channels,particularly EAG1 and applying machine learning models to predict and optimize channel modulators for pharmaceutical intervention of a wide range of diseases. He has developed experimentally grounded AI approaches that have led to the identification of novel inhibitors, resulting in a filed patent. In parallel, Dr. Kihn is leading molecular simulations of HCN channel isoforms to study cAMP- and voltage-dependent gating mechanisms, with an emphasis on isoform-specific behavior relevant to aging and neurodegenerative diseases. His work integrates biophysical techniques such as HDX-MS, SPR, and electrophysiology to experimentally validate computational predictions, demonstrating strong progress in advancing both his independent research expertise and the broader field of structure-based drug discovery.

Valerie Lewitus: 2023 – 2025 (Evans Lab, Department of Neuroscience)

Dr. Valerie Lewitus is a postdoctoral trainee in Dr. Evans’ lab who studies the effect of exercise on motor skill learning and neuronal properties in extended basal ganglia circuitry using a combination of behavioral, electrophysiological, optogenetic, and imaging techniques. Using her research background in sex hormone effects in the brain, Valerie is exploring the possible role of estrogen in boosting the exercise-driven enhancement of motor skill learning. Her long-term goal is to determine potential beneficial interactions between two therapeutic interventions – exercise and estrogen treatment – to improve deficits in motor skill learning such as those seen in normal aging as well as in Parkinson’s disease.

Amanda Schneeweiss: 2022 – 2023 (Pak Lab, Department of Pharmacology & Physiology)

My research involved using mass spectrometry to identify novel tau phosphorylation sites involved in synaptic plasticity and aging mice. After identifying novel sites, I used molecular biology techniques to further understand what the function of these sites are. We found that a novel site on the C-terminus of tau may be involved in tau aggregation.

Kyle Shattuck: 2023 – 2025 (Turkeltaub Lab, Department of Rehabilitation)

Kyle’s research focuses on the analysis of individualized and heterogeneous progression through healthy aging and acquired neurological disorders. His previous research has used neuroimaging to track structural and functional brain changes associated with memory and attention processes in cohorts with Alzheimer’s disease and HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders. Kyle’s current work adapts machine learning algorithms to characterize the properties and implications of lesions found in brain MRI scans from stroke survivors.

Ajay Uprety: 2023 – 2025 (Ostroumov Lab, Department of Pharmacology & Physiology)

My current research focuses on KCC2 dependent changes to inhibitory gabaergic signaling in Parkinson’s Disease. To accomplish this I use a combination of slice and inVivo electrophysiological techniques as well as behavior and machine learning analysis.

Pre-doctoral Students

Matthew Amontree: 2023 – 2025 (Conant Lab, Department of Neuroscience)

I study the CNS extracellular matrix (ECM) and its role in regulating synaptic plasticity. I am currently investigating novel therapeutics that can mitigate ECM dysfunction in an Alzheimer’s disease mouse model. The goal is to determine safe compounds that promote cognitive flexibility and reduce neurodegenerative pathology.

Micaila Curtis: 2022-2024 (Alimanti Lab, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular & Cellular Biology)

Chronic bone and musculoskeletal degenerative diseases in the aging population, such as osteoporosis, have extensive challenges for interventions and need new research modalities to narrow down mechanisms to target for therapeutics and grafting purposes. Our research focuses on the contribution of Vitamin C in the bone extracellular matrix (ECM) to bone mechanical properties, as well as the activity of stromal cells and microvasculature. We will generate bone ECM to incorporate into 3D bone-on-a-chip microfluidics to evaluate Vitamin C on young, aged, and secondary osteoporotic research models. Finally, we will 3D-bioprint bone scaffolds for implantation into mouse bone defects to evaluate the biocompatibility, host integration, and tissue regeneration capacity of generated bone biomaterials in young and secondary osteoporotic mice.

Katelyn Dial: 2021-2023 (Conant Lab, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular & Cellular Biology)

Around 14% of adults aged 60 and over live with a mental disorder, and, globally, around a quarter of deaths from suicide (27.2%) are among people aged 60 or over. Recently, a class of drugs known as “psychedelics”, whose common mechanism of action is agonism at the serotonin 2A receptor (5HT2AR), has been given the breakthrough designation by the FDA for the treatment of major depression and treatment-resistant depression. Under the guidance of Dr. Katherine Conant, I aim to investigate how specific 5HT2AR agonism might affect extracellular matrix composition and neural oscillations relevant to mood, resulting in an antidepressant response. Improved understanding of how psychedelics cause their rapid and sustained antidepressant effects can help to advance both our understanding of the mechanisms underlying MDD and our efforts to develop better-targeted treatments for MDD.

Katie Hummel: 2021-2023 (Conant Lab, Department of Neuroscience)

Exploring the role of CCR5 in mood and behavior. (pplied a multidisciplinary approach to investigate the role C-C motif chemokine receptor-5 (CCR5) in behavior and memory, plasticity, and neuronal oscillations related to neuropsychiatric disorders. I conducted extensive behavioral tests for anxiety, depression, and memory endpoints, as well as locomotion studies, weight studies, and sleep studies for a colony of CCR5 knockout mice. I employed in vivo telemetry EEG to research neuronal oscillations for a longitudinal study. Used EEGLAB and PACT in MATLAB to write specialized code that performed phase-amplitude coupling (PAC) analysis on continuous ADInstruments EEG files. I used a variety of molecular assays to investigate novel pathways and mechanisms for CCR5 signaling. I utilized immunofluorescence to visualize plasticity- associated neuronal expression and extracellular matrix structures in the hippocampus, amygdala, and cortex, and wrote code for FIJI/ImageJ and QuPath to automate analysis and quantification of data. Finally, I performed complex statistical analyses, including principal component analysis, on proteomics data.

Peyton Thomas: 2023 – 2025 (Xiong Lab, Department of Neuroscience)

I am a PhD student in the Cognitive Neuroimaging Lab directed by Dr. Xiong Jiang. My research utilizes MRI to examine structural and functional changes related to aging, HIV, and Alzheimer’s disease. I am particularly interested in the potential overlap and risk for comorbidity of Alzheimer’s disease in aging populations living with HIV.

Prachi Shah: 2022-2024 (Cervantes-Sandoval Lab, Department of Biology)

My current research focuses on understanding the biological mechanisms underlying retrograde amnesia using Drosophila melanogaster. My project focuses on understanding anesthesia-associated memory loss and determining the role of dopaminergic signaling in this phenomenon. We will not have a complete understanding of how memory systems work until we understand the mechanisms underlying forgetting. The implications of this research can potentially provide future insight into memory loss associated with neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease, and the biological process of aging.