Principle Investigator

I discovered my love of astrocytes during my doctoral training in the laboratory of Dr. Michelle Olsen at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). During my graduate training, I investigated the role of a specific isoform of BDNF’s receptor, TRKB.T1, in astrocyte morphological maturation.

I became interested in what regulates gene expression in astrocytes and completed my postdoctoral work in Dr. Eric Nestler’s lab at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. My postdoc work focused on astrocyte-specific RNA-sequencing, Cut&Run-sequencing, astrocyte-specific viral-mediated manipulation, and neuronal DREADDs in combination with behavioral assays to investigate the role of astrocytic CREB in mediating complex behavior, including depression and addiction-related behaviors.