Summer 2021

University of California - Department of Nutritional Biology

I worked in the lab of Dr. Patricia Oteiza with the assistance of graduate student Jiye Kang to study the capacity of a flavonol - (-) epicatechin to influence protein expression in Alzheimer's Disease. Using various analytical databases such as ShinyGO, KEGG, and Ensembl I was able to identify changes in key proteins that have been linked to high fat/ high sugar diet comorbidities.  

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This work was supported by the NUTGAP program and the UC Office of the President.

2020 - 2022

Savannah State University - Department of Biology + University of Georgia - Department of Metabolomics

Over two years I worked as an undergraduate research training assistant in the lab of Teresa Shakespeare. This project was a part of the Virtual Integrated Project at the University of Georgia in the lab of Arthur Edison. The lab was interested in finding new isolates of Caenorhabditis elegans in the southeast region of Georgia and determining the mechanism of toxin inactivation when in the presence of 1-hydroxyphenazine. 

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This work was supported by the National Institutes of Health Maximizing Access to Research Careers (MARC) Fellowship.

Summer 2020

Emory University - Department of Neuroscience

The Undergraduate Research Training program School Summer Opportunities for Academic Research (LGS-SOAR) was a virtual experience due to social distance regulations. The 10-week program focused on professional development and research ethics.

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This work was supported by Emory College of Arts & Sciences and Laney Graduate School Summer Opportunities for Academic Research (LGS-SOAR) ​

2020-2019

Savannah State University - Mathematics Department

In this project, I worked under Dr. Abhinandan Chowdhury in the Mathematics Department on using mathematical modeling to understand the relationship between deceleration and discontinuation during dorsal induction of maturation of the Central Nervous System process.

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This work was funded by NSF - HBCU - UP - Targeted Infusion Project Award (1719444).

Summer 2019

Johns Hopkins University - Cellular, Molecular, Developmental, Biology Program

I worked with Dr. Andrew Gordus with the assistance of graduate student Amanda Ray to identify the integral properties of a specific neuron within a neural network in the model organism C. elegans. Using optogenetics and calcium imaging techniques to visualize specific neurons within a circuit. With a fluorescence microscope and a micromirror array, I was able to target specific neurons concurrently and piecewise in various combinatory trials to record their activity. During this 10-week experience, I was able to determine that this method had the potential capacity to determine how a circuit processes information. 

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This work was funded by the NIH (R35GM124883) and the Whitehall Foundation. Support was provided to (L.A.) through the National Science Foundation REU Site Award (DBI-1757708).