Alicia Che, PhD
PI
Native of Costa Rica with a passionate interest in clinical/translational neuroscience, teaching, and mentoring. I'm involved in many projects from basic science to specific neuropsychiatric diseases. Mainly investigating in-vivo neonatal hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy induce seizures and translaminar spontaneous neuronal activity in the barrel cortex. I'm an avid traveler, enjoy long walks, biking, and experiencing new types of food and cultures.
Ijeoma is an MD/PhD student interested in how early life experiences shape circuit development.
I am fascinated by the role of astrocytes—at the single- and network-level—in regulating cortical states. In the Che lab, I am leveraging computational, molecular, and systems approaches to understand how these glial cells interact with interneurons to establish the excitation-inhibition balance critical for cognitive circuits, especially in neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease. When I am not peering over the stereotax or debugging lines of code, I like to spend my time outdoors fishing, hiking, or running, as well as being indoors watching movies or playing video games.
My research interests lie in the physiology of neural circuits, which I explore using two-photon imaging and slice electrophysiology. In my free time, I like to play video games, watch soccer, and go rock climbing. I was born in Venezuela, raised in Puerto Rico, and I’m passionate about contributing to initiatives that seek to increase diversity in science.
John Vargas Ortiz, MD
Postgraduate assistant
Lin Lin, PhD
Postdoc
Rong-Jian Liu, MD,PhD
Senior research scientist
Min Wu, PhD
Senior research scientist
Sajida Khan, PhD
Associate research scientist
Jensine Coudriet
PhD student
Vincent Tse
PhD student
Lab Alumni
High school students
Amanda Wang (Summer 2022)
Shirley Xinyu Zhang (Summer 2023)
Suki Sze (Summer 2023)
Ijeoma Nwabudike
MD-PhD student
Yuna Park
Postgraduate assistant
Nae Pajarillo
PhD student
Undergraduate students
Alison Noronha (Summer 2022)
Atheer Musad (Summer 2022)
Thompson Uwanomen (2022-2023)
I am broadly interested in studying neuropsychiatric disorders, such as Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Alzheimer's disease (AD), using various techniques ranging from molecular to behavioral techniques in mouse models. Outside of the lab, I enjoy karaoke and trying new restaurants.
As a INP graduate student in the Che Lab, I am broadly curious about intersectional developmental research! Specifically, my interests lie in early life brain maturation, cellular and molecular hallmarks of stress, and my current project focuses on understanding the impact of cannabinoids across development. I am passionate about inclusive teaching and scientific equity for underserved communities, so I am always looking for ways to connect with organizations on and off campus. I love to hike, workout, play rugby, cook, and do a craft with friends. I am a queer/trans scientist, a Kavli scholar, and a proud cat parent to my cat son, Benito.
Liyuan Sun, PhD
Postdoc
Marina Edward
PhD student (joint with Bordey Lab)
Victor Sanchez Franco
PhD student