Welcome
About Me
I’m a postdoctoral research associate and NIA K00 fellow, training with Dr. Douglas Phanstiel at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. I’m interested in developing and applying complex iPSC-derived tools and models to explore the interplay between genetics, proteomics, and cellular dynamics in neurodegenerative disease.
Research Journey
Over the course of my career, I’ve followed a diverse and evolving path through neuroscience research. As an undergraduate, I built a strong foundation in theoretical and behavioral neuroscience. During a brief graduate program, I gained hands-on experience with in vivo systems before shifting focus to molecular and genetic approaches.
As a research technician with Dr. Nilufer Ertekin-Taner in her Genetics of Alzheimer's Disease and Endophenotypes Laboratory at the Mayo Clinic, I studied the integration of Alzheimer’s disease genetics with endophenotypes.
I then entered the Mayo Clinic Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and pursued my Ph.D. in Dr. Pamela McLean's Neurobiology of Parkinson's Disease and Related Disorders Laboratory, developing iPSC-derived models of synucleinopathy and exploring cell-type-specific regenerative mechanisms in response to synocleinopathy-memetic conditions.
Now, as a postdoctoral researcher in the Phanstiel Lab at UNC Chapel Hill, I am integrating multi-omic analyses with complex three-dimensional cellular models of Alzheimer’s disease. Across each stage, I’ve refined my focus toward understanding how genetics, cell identity, and disease processes converge. I ultimately hope to further develop these approaches in an independent research program.