MD/PhD Student, Gao Lab
ltf28@drexel.edu
PhD Student, Detloff Lab
gag52@drexel.edu
Education:
Grace graduated as a research scholar with a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Texas A&M University in the spring of 2022 with a major in biology and minors in psychology and neuroscience. Prior to joining the Detloff lab, Grace trained with Dr. Jim Grau at Texas A&M University where she investigated pain after traumatic brain injury. Grace joined the Drexel University Neuroscience Graduate Program in fall 2022 and joined the lab of Dr. Megan Detloff, where she is completing her thesis work.
Current research:
Individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) experience a variety of motor, sensory, and neuroimmune challenges after injury, with 65-85% of individuals reporting chronic pain. Currently, there are no effective FDA approved treatments for the treatment of neuropathic pain after SCI. However, a growing body of literature implicates neuroimmune interactions in the initiation and maintenance of chronic pain after SCI. Because pain is a multifaceted experience, involving both sensory discriminative and affective aspects, the Detloff lab addresses these neuroimmune interactions along the sensory neuroaxis, with a particular interest in the dorsal root ganglia. Grace hopes to bridge the gap between behavior, nociceptor, and immune cell activity to better understand the various aspects of chronic pain and harness the potential of neuroimmune modulation in order to ameliorate chronic pain after SCI.
Research interests:
Neurotrauma, spinal cord injury, pain, neuroplasticity and neuroimmune modulation.
PhD Student
aah347@drexel.edu
Education:
Adam holds a BS in neuroscience and psychology. He is a first-year student on a PhD track.
Research:
Adam is interested in the factors that contribute to regeneration and functional recovery in the spinal cord after injury.
PhD Student
jrm472@drexel.edu
Education:
I have a bachelor of science in behavioral neuroscience with a minor in psychology from Lehigh University. I am a first-year PhD Student.
Research interests:
I am most interested in neurodegenerative diseases but have interests in addiction and the reward pathway as well.
PhD Student, Wang Lab
ano43@drexel.edu
Education:
Ashley graduated with a BS and honors from the University of Scranton in 2017 with a double major in neuroscience and biology and a minor in biochemistry. She joined the department in fall 2017 as a research assistant in the Wang Lab and began the graduate program in fall 2019, remaining in the Wang Lab to pursue a PhD in neuroscience.
Research:
Ashley is interested in how brain oscillations and unique patterns of neural ensemble activity can initiate and influence the process of memory consolidation in mice, which occurs during sleep. She utilizes extracellular electrophysiology and optogenetics in freely behaving mice to determine the neural mechanisms that store our long-lasting memories. She hopes to expand our understanding of how the brain integrates experiences to properly respond to our environment, which can have a wide impact on amnestic, psychiatric, pathological and addiction disorders.
Research interests:
Learning, memory, memory consolidation, sleep neurobiology, systems neurobiology, information processing.
PhD Candidate, Detloff Lab
jw3775@drexel.edu
Education:
Jason graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts from Alfred University in spring 2019 with a major in clinical psychology and minors in biology and chemistry. He entered the Drexel University Neuroscience graduate program in fall 2021 and joined the lab of Dr. Megan Detloff, where he completed his MS in neuroscience in 2023, before transitioning into the PhD program.
Current research:
Chronic neuropathic pain is a debilitating secondary complication that develops following a spinal cord injury (SCI). This pain serves as a significant determinant to the quality of life in individuals living with SCI, and many of the therapies used clinically are ineffective at managing their pain. The inflammatory response driven by cells such as infiltrating macrophages after SCI has been tightly connected to both the development and resolution of neuropathic pain, and the role of small extracellular vesicles (sEVs) secreted by these cells in neuroinflammation has become an area of increasing interest in recent years. In a rodent model of SCI-induced neuropathic pain, Jason is investigating the therapeutic potential of macrophage-derived sEVs, as well how these vesicles contribute to inflammation and the plasticity of nociceptive afferents after injury.
Research interests:
Neurotrauma, chronic pain, neuroinflammation, and neuroplasticity
MS Student
mjw458@drexel.edu
Education:
I graduated with from the University of Nebraska at Omaha with a BS in psychology and a concentration in behavioral neuroscience along with a BS in Neuroscience. I am currently a first-year student on the MS tract at Drexel University.
Research interests:
I am interested in examining the regenerative capabilities in the motor centers of the brain and the spinal cord in order to produce motor behavior after injury..