Meet the Summer Scholars
Welcome! We are thrilled to introduce you to the 2024 cohort of the Irvine Summer Institute in Neuroscience Program!
Anapurna Germain
Anapurna Germain is an undergraduate student at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University studying Biology and Psychology. This summer, Anapurna worked in Dr. Steve Mahler’s laboratory with her PhD candidate mentor Erica Ramirez to explore how specific neurons in the ventral pallidum area of the brain contribute to social behavior, using advanced tissue imaging techniques.
Meet Isaac Clay
Isaac Clay is an undergraduate student from Xavier University of Louisiana and is a Psychology major, minoring in Sociology. Isaac spent his summer conducting research in the laboratory of Dr. Michael Yassa exploring the connection between estradiol and memory impairment using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), working with his PhD student mentor, Dana Parker.
Meet Déja Lee
Déja Lee is an undergraduate Biology major studying at the University of California, Irvine. This summer, Déja worked with her MD/PhD candidate mentor Bianca Leonard, in the laboratory of Dr. Michael Yassa. Using data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development Study, Deja’s research explored how early life factors, such as adversity experienced by young Black girls influence their resilience later in life.
Meet Destiny Edens
Destiny Edens is an undergraduate student at North Carolina A&T University, majoring in Psychology. This summer, Destiny conducted research in the laboratory of Dr. Aaron Bornstein with their Postdoctoral Scholar mentor, Dr. Dale Zhou. This summer they explored how the descriptions of clinical diagnosis criteria for Autism and Schizophrenia compare to first-hand accounts and how they evolve over time using computational models.
Meet Destiny Green
Destiny Green is an undergraduate student at Howard University majoring in Biology, with a double minor in Chemistry and Psychology. This summer, Destiny conducted research in the laboratory of Dr. Christie Fowler alongside her PhD Candidate mentor, Malia Bautista. During her time in the Fowler Lab, Destiny explored how chronic mild stress and a protein called Lynx2 affect nicotine use and social behavior in mice.
Meet Jada Mars
Jada Mars is an undergraduate student at North Carolina A&T University studying Biology. Jada spent her summer conducting research in the Laboratory of Dr. Katie Thompson-Peer with her graduate student mentor, Mia Brantley. Using drosophila melanogaster also known as the common fruit fly as a model, Jada explored the role of cell adhesion molecules in dendrite regeneration after laser induced injury.
Meet Naomi Cole
Naomi Cole is an undergraduate student at Howard University, where she is majoring in Biology and minoring in both Psychology and Chemistry. This summer, Naomi worked in Dr. Steve Mahler’s laboratory with her PhD student mentor Kate Lawson to study the relationship between the context in which psychedelics are administered affects brain activity, as measured by cFos expression in various brain regions. This research may shed light on how context influences the effectiveness of psychedelic treatments for psychiatric disorders.
Meet Taryn Mallory
Taryn Mallory is an undergraduate student at North Carolina A&T University, majoring in Psychology and Biology. This summer, Taryn conducted research in the laboratory of Dr. Eitan Schectman with her PhD student mentor, Neda Morakabati. Taryn explored the relationship between mood and sleep by assessing how self-reported mood changes from before to after a nap.
Meet Tyra Dennis
Tyra Dennis is an undergraduate student at North Carolina A&T University in the Child Development and Family Relations program, minoring in psychology . Tyra spent her summer conducting research in the laboratory of Dr. Lisa Flanagan with her MD/PhD student mentor, Laura Tennis. She explored how a sugar molecule called GlcNAc and a protein named Yap influence the development and fate of neural stem and progenitor cells. Her work involved using cell culture, immunohistochemistry, and fluorescent microscopy to explore these relationships.
Meet Nadeja Jackson
Nadeja Jackson is an undergraduate student at Howard University, studying Psychology. This summer, Nadeja conducted research in the laboratory of Dr. Aaron Bornstein with her PhD student mentor, Ari Khoudary. Nadeja explored how past experiences shape present decision-making by using programing and computational modeling to assess how expectations, combined with new evidence, guide the decision-making process.
Meet Lauryn Mitchell
Lauryn Mitchell is an undergraduate student at Hampton University majoring in Communicative Sciences and Disorders and minoring in Psychology. This summer, Lauryn conducted research in the laboratory of Dr. Judith Kroll alongside her graduate student mentor Jasmin Hernandez Santacruz. Using electroencephalogram (EEG), Lauryn explored how the human bilingual brain processes language, and the effect of code switching on accessing dominant languages.
About the Program
The Irvine Summer Institute in Neuroscience Program at the University of California, Irvine Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory is an immersive residential neuroscience research program. Funded by the National Science Foundation's Research Experiences for Undergraduates program and the University of California Office of the President's UC-HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) Initiative, the program aims to expose undergraduate students from groups underrepresented in science to neuroscience research.
Supporting Partners
The Irvine Summer Institute in Neuroscience is possible thanks to funding from the National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates (NSF-REU), the US Department of Defense Awards to Stimulate and Support Undergraduate Research Experiences (ASSURE), and the University of California - Historically Black Colleges and Universities (UC-HBCU) Initiative from the UC Office of the President.
