Helen Lai, Ph.D. (PI)
Education:
- B.A. in Chemistry, Cornell University
- Ph.D. in Biophysics, UCSF
Mentor: Dr. Lily Jan
Thesis: Gating mechanism of voltage-gated potassium channels.
Postdoc: Dr. Jane Johnson
Topic: Transcription factors specifying neuronal cell fates.
Fellow: Frank and Sara McKnight Fellow
Topic: Development and function of the somatosensory system.
Favorite lab item(s): Mini volumetric and Erlenmeyer flasks
Favorite cell type: All non-brain neurons
Daily addiction: NYT Crossword puzzle
Favorite outside lab activity: Watching the kids grow
Iliodora Pop, Ph.D. (Scientist)
Education:
- M.D. University of Medicine and Pharmacy Craiova, Romania
- Ph.D. University of Medicine and Pharmacy Craiova, Romania
Mentor: Dr. Florin Bogdan
Thesis: Contributions to the study of the constitution of the histological table of human skeletal striated muscle tissue in trichinosis.
Postdoc: Dr. Ellen Vitetta
Lab Project(s): Understanding how proprioceptive information is organized at the level of spinocerebellar neurons in the spinal cord.
Favorite lab item(s): Microscope
Favorite cell type: Clarke’s column (CC) neurons
Daily addiction: Taking care of my flowers
Favorite outside lab activity: Talking with my kids and walking our dog Nyx
Chih-Wei Zeng, Ph.D. (Instructor)
Education:
- PhD in Molecular and Cellular Biology, National Taiwan University, Taiwan
Mentor: Prof. Huai-Jen Tsai
Topic: Neural regeneration after injury, with a focus on spinal cord repair across developmental stages
Lab Project: Molecular and Cellular Mechanisms of Peripheral Axon Regeneration after Sciatic Nerve Injury
Favorite lab item(s): Confocal microscope
Favorite cell type: Somatosensory neuron
Daily addiction: Coffee
Favorite outside lab activity: Watching movies and exploring new food spots
Maggie Stanford (Graduate Student)
Education: B.S. in Biology and Chemistry, Northwestern State University of Louisiana
Post-Bac: Washington University in St. Louis
Mentor: Bruce A. Carlson
Topic: Sensorimotor integration in weakly electric mormyrid fish
Lab Project: Somatosensation in the autonomic nervous system
Favorite lab item: Scoopula
Favorite cell type: Motor neurons
Daily addiction: Book reading while coffee drinking
Favorite outside lab activity: Couch rotting with my dog and cat
Sarah Jobbins (Graduate Student)
Education: B.S. in Neuroscience, UCLA
Mentor: Dr. Larry Hoffman
Topic: Efferent terminal distribution in vestibular epithelia.
Post grad:
- Mentor: Dr. Heather Christofk
- Topic: Metabolic effect of Epstein-Barr Virus lytic reactivation.
Grad:
- Topic: Maintenance of peripheral sensory neuron identity.
Favorite lab item: Repeat pipettor
Favorite cell type: Mirror neurons
Daily addiction: My morning tea
Favorite outside lab activity: Reading & DnD
Carla Rivera-Pacheco (Graduate Student)
Education: BS. in Microbiology, University of Puerto Rico – Humacao
Post-Bac: University of North Carolina Chapel Hill
- Mentor: Dr. Jose Rodriguez-Romaguera
- Topic: Effects of social threat on brain-wide neural activity.
Grad:
- Topic: Generating an early postnatal spinal cord cell atlas.
Favorite lab item: Beakers
Favorite cell type: Sensory neurons
Daily addiction: Coffee
Favorite outside lab activity: Embroidery and Netflix
Carter Oostmeyer (Tech)
Education: B.S. in Biomedical Engineering, University of Oklahoma
- Mentor: Dr. Michael Detamore
- Topic: Identifying chondroinductive peptides for cartilage regeneration
Lab Project: Determine if skin innervation of sensory neurons changes upon adult Prdm12 CKO.
Favorite lab item: Multichannel Pipette
Favorite cell type: Chondrocytes
Daily Addiction: My evening walk
Favorite outside lab activity: Watching K-pop music videos
Yushra Rashid (Medical Student)
Former Lab Members
| Name | Role |
|---|---|
| Anthony Ho | Research Technician (2015-2017) |
| Tejas Joshi | SURF Student (Summer 2016) |
| Katherine Casey | STARS Student (Summer 2017, 2018) |
| Clayton Trevino | SURF Student (Summer 2018) |
| Lorelai Pop | STARS Student (Summer 2018) |
| Mike Viacheslavov | Research Technician (2017-2018) |
| Razaq Durodoye | Research Asst (2018-2019) |
| Adelaide Brooks | Summer Intern (Summer 2019) |
| Megan Goyal | SURF Student (Summer 2019, 2020) |
| Marghi Jani UTD | Green Fellow (Spring 2020) |
| Portia Okafor | Research Technician (2020-2021) |
| Osita Ogujiofor | Research Assistant (2017-2021) |
| Felipe Espinosa-Becerra, Ph.D. | Scientist (2018-2023) |
| Tet Piermartiri, Ph.D. | Postdoctoral Fellow (2019-2021) |
| Mark Landy, Ph.D. | MD/PhD Graduate Student (2017-2021) |
| Grace Moore | UTD Green Fellow (Spring-Summer 2022) |
| Gabe Ortiz | SURF Student (Summer 2022, 2023) |
| David Zaha | Summer Intern (Summer 2023) |
| Sumayyah Jilani | STARs Student (Summer 2024, 2025) |
| Vihaan Pande | Summer Intern (Summer 2024, 2025) |
| Deanna Hopkins | Research Technician (2023-2025) |
| Yushra Rashid | Medical Student (Spring-Summer 2024) |
| Rohit Kamath | Medical Student (Summer 2023) |