Laboratory of Dr. Ekaterina Likhtik

Dec 2019 - Present, New York, NY

1) Identified new glial & extracellular matrix-based therapeutic targets for psychiatric disorders:

• Applied in-vivo imaging, electrophysiology, optogenetics, and transcriptomics to investigate novel plasticity mechanisms in prefrontal interneurons and their extracellular specializations, including satellite oligodendrocytes and perineuronal nets (PNNs).

• Discovered a non-myelinating, learning-dependent role for oligodendrocytes (OLs) in PNN remodeling.

• Revealed the first account of a plasticity mechanism for satellite OLs.

• Presented findings at many conferences & 2 publications in prep.

2) Investigated demyelination-induced cognitive & psychiatric deficits:

• Characterized learning and memory deficits associated with cuprizone-induced demyelination, revealing novel psychiatric symptomatology in multiple sclerosis. Began & oversaw this project for 4 years as part of an undergraduate honors thesis project.

Laboratory of Dr. C. Daniel Salzman

July 2017 - July 2019, New York, NY

1) Investigated the neural mechanisms of environmental stimuli-induced obesity & overeating:

• Designed and executed an independent project on the neural effects of intragastric nutrient infusion, contributing to a Boehringer Ingelheim-funded grant (2020).

• Implemented & designed mouse behavior training (freely moving & head-fixed), surgeries (brain & intragastric), immunohistochemistry (rodent & primate), microscopy, image analysis, and in-vivo imaging, and assisted with non-human primate surgery & behavioral tasks.

2) Played a key role in establishing a new rodent laboratory within a historically-primate lab, leading the move and setup of the lab space (from the Columbia University Medical Center to the Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute) and managing daily operations, including ordering, training research assistants, and ensuring compliance with IACUC protocols, EH&S standards, and transgenic colony management.

Laboratory of Dr. Paul Reier

May 2015 - July 2017, Gainesville, FL

1) Researched pre-clinical therapeutic strategies to promote recovery after cervical spinal cord injury:

• Investigated fetal stem cell transplantation and microstimulation to enhance functional recovery in rat models of cervical spinal cord injury, building on the lab’s groundbreaking history of human stem cell transplants into paralyzed patients.

• Designed a novel technique for labeling spinal recording locations by depositing silver from electrodes: Published results in the Journal of Neurophysiology PMID: 27974450 & presented at conferences.

2) Managed all aspects of lab operations, including purchasing, protocol development, transgenic colony management, equipment maintenance, and hiring, training, and supervising a 15-member team of technicians, masters, and undergraduate students.

• Led and executed research projects from experimental design to analysis, ensuring timely and accurate results.

• Conducted procedures such as surgeries, stem cell harvesting, tissue collection, immunohistochemistry, behavioral protocols, and microscopy.

Laboratory of Dr. Gary Miller

Nov 2014 - May 2015, Atlanta, GA

• Assisted in a graduate study investigating the role of pesticides (e.g., persistent organochlorine insecticides) in Parkinson’s disease development.

• Utilized fast-scan cyclic voltammetry to examine how these compounds affect dopamine transport and packaging, and designed carbon fiber

  microelectrodes for the study.

• Conducted treadmill behavioral training and histological analysis in mice to explore the effects of exercise on nigrostriatal dopamine levels.

Laboratory of Dr. Tamara Caspary

May - September 2013, Atlanta, GA

• Assisted in a graduate study which performed gene resequencing to determine the function of the gene Arl13b in Joubert Syndrome and other cilia-related diseases.

• Gained experience with tissue-culture, western-blots, gavaging neonatal mice, and rodent cesarean sections

Laboratory of Dr. Darryl Neill

August 2014 - May 2015, Atlanta, GA

• Compiled mini-reviews & lecture material during semester-long, one-on-one research studies with faculty advisor.

  • Research Topic (Fall 2014): The Behavioral and Neurobiological Actions of Psychostimulants. Differing effects of amphetamine on the performance of humans versus rodents in tests for impulse control and delayed discounting.

  • Research Topic (Spring 2015): The Neuroscience of Near-Death Experiences.

    • My independent research was presented as a two-part lecture for Dr. Daryl Neill’s undergraduate course “Neuroscience, Religion, and the Human Condition” at Emory University, Spring 2015.