The Van Bockstaele Laboratory Members

Beverly Reyes, PhD, DVM

Beverly is a research associate professor in the Department of Pharmacology and Physiology at Drexel University College of Medicine.

Jennifer Ross

Jenn is a third year PhD student in the Department of Pharmacology in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and Professional Studies at Drexel University College of Medicine. Her project focuses on examining the contribution of the locus coeruleus-norepinephrine system and stress circuitry in the development of amyloid beta aggregates and Alzheimer's Disease.

Ryan Wyrofsky

Ryan is a fourth year PhD candidate in the Department of Pharmacology and Physiology in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and Professional Studies at Drexel University College of Medicine. His research is aimed at investigating how the endocannabinoid system modulates stress circuitry within the locus coeruleus, to potentially protect against the development of stress-induced psychiatric disorders.

Michael Warner

Michael is a research assistant who helps with many different projects in the lab. Michael's individual project is aimed at examining neural substrates underlying stress resilience. He studies Neuropeptide Y (NPY), a protein that is thought to confer increased resilience to stress. He is examining how NPY interacts with the stress-integrative noradrenergic system in the brain.

Ronnie Shade

Ronnie is a graduate student in the Master's Program in Interdisciplinary Health Sciences in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and Professional Studies in the College of Medicine at Drexel University. His research project focuses on how the endogenous brain cannabinoid system affects neural circuits involved in processing stress.

Melissa Urquhart

Melissa is a graduate student in the Master's Program in Interdisciplinary Health Sciences in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences and Professional Studies in the College of Medicine at Drexel University. She is studying neural substrates underlying why females are more vulnerable to stress-induced psychiatric disorders.

Using the ultramicrotome, Beverly is sectioning very thin slices of sample prefrontal cortex in preparation for visualization via electron microscopy.

Jenn at the electron microscope, looking for amyloid beta immunoreactivity in the LC.

Jenn using her SfN poster to explain her project on stress induced LC activation and amyloid beta accumulation to new lab members Melissa and Ronnie.

Ryan preparing his Western blot samples, order to detect endocannabinoid markers in the LC.

Michael is flat embedding LC tissue slices, as part of the electron microscopy immunohistochemical procedure.