Meet our Neurophytes

Cohort 1 (2019-2021)

Destiny Moore

Undergraduate University: Howard University
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 1
Education: Bachelor of Science, C/O 2021
Mentor(s): Leah Rubin PhD, MPH; Asante Kamkwalala PhD
Research Focus: Neurological disorders in virally-suppressed women with HIV

Hannah Greaves

Undergraduate University: Lafayette College
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 1
Education: Bachelor of Science, C/O 2021
Mentor(s): Amanda Brown, PhD
Research Focus: HIV reservoirs in macrophages/microglia (2019); Role of Heat Shock Protein (HSP-90) stress response in HIV-1 and HIV associated comorbidities (2020)

Jeremiah Acosta

Undergraduate University: Howard University
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 1
Education: Bachelor of Science, C/O 2021
Mentor(s): Amanda Brown, PhD; Xiaolei Zhu, PhD
Research Focus: Neurodegenerative disorders and behaviors in HIV

Matthew Berrios

Undergraduate University: Truman State University
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 1
Education: Bachelor of Science, C/O 2021
Mentor(s): Amanda Brown, PhD

Cohort 2 (2020-2022)

Ashley Yim

Undergraduate University: University of Maryland, College Park
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 2
Education: Bachelor of Science, C/O 2023
Mentor(s): Amanda Brown, PhD
Research Focus: Relationship between osteopontin and HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders

Catalina Argandona

Undergraduate University: University of Maryland, College Park
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 2
Education: Bachelor of Science, C/O 2022
Mentor(s): Amanda Brown, PhD
Research Focus: Neuroinflammation and inflammasomes

Edian Cuevas Salas

Undergraduate University: University of Puerto Rico in Aguadilla
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 2
Mentor(s): Brett Morrison, PhD
Research Focus: The role of Schwann cell P2X4R in HIV gp120-induced painful neuropathy

Elizabeth Chu

Undergraduate University: St. Johns University
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 2
Education: Bachelor of Science, C/O 2023
Mentor(s): Amanda Brown, PhD
Research Focus: HIV Tat and the Subcellular Mislocalization of the Neuronal Splicing Factor Rbfox3

Fatima Zahra Karkoub

Undergraduate University: Notre Dame of Maryland University
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 2
Education: Bachelor of Science, C/O 2022
Mentor(s): Carlo Colantuoni, PhD; Audrey Knight, PhD
Research Focus: Genetic expression related to HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND)

Kyrian Elekwachi

Undergraduate University: University of Pittsburgh
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 2
Education: Bachelor of Science, C/O 2023
Mentor(s): Amanda Brown, PhD
Research Focus: Effects of HIV on spontaneous neural activity in HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND)

Suwilanji Muwowo

Undergraduate University: Boston University
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 2
Education: Bachelor of Science, C/O 2021
Mentor(s): Amanda Brown, PhD
Research Focus: HIV induced aggregate formation and neuropathologic hallmarks in Alzheimer's disease.

Cohort 3 (2021-present)

Erika Moe

Undergraduate University: University of Oregon
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 3
Education: Bachelor of Science, C/O 2022
Mentor(s): Amanda Brown, PhD (2021); Leah Rubin PhD, MPH (2022)
Research Focus: Microglial L-type calcium channels in Bipolar Disorder (2021); Impact of HIV on information processing speed (2022)

Jayda Fomengia

Undergraduate University: University of Maryland, College Park
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 3
Mentor(s): Leah Rubin PhD, MPH; Asante Kamkwalala PhD
Research Focus: Amyloid burden in women with HIV (WwHIV) (2021); Semantic and fluency impairments in people with HIV (2022); Facial emotion processing performance and childhood trauma in people with HIV (2023)

Cohort 4 (2022-present)

Anna Arzeno

Undergraduate University: Hamilton College
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 4
Mentor(s): Andrew Huhn, PhD (2022); Eileen Scully, PhD (2023)
Research Focus: Relationships between quality of life, gender, and mental health in patients with opioid-use disorders (2022); Effects of 17b-estradiol on estrogen receptors in human monocytes (2023)

Ariana Vaida

Undergraduate University: Duke University
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 4
Mentor(s): Amanda Brown, PhD
Research Focus: Proinflammatory signaling and molecular mechanisms of HIV-1 persistence in microglia (2022); Measuring HIV latency and reactivation with digital PCR (2023)

Gabriela Chacon Mora

Undergraduate University: Lake Forest College
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 4
Mentor(s): Leah Rubin PhD, MPH; Asante Kamkwalala PhD
Research Focus: Posterior Inferotemporal Cortex as a target for PTSD treatment (2022); Impacts of the cortisol awakening response on stress in women with HIV (2023)

Labib Ahmed Mamun

Undergraduate University: Colgate University
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 3
Mentor(s): Dionna Williams, PhD
Research Focus: Neuroinflammation and endocannabinoid receptor expression on HIV-infected macrophages/microglia

Cohort 5 (2023-present)

Alaina Jefferson

Undergraduate University: Vanderbilt University
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 5
Mentor(s): Kate Fitzgerald, PhD
Research Focus: Effects of environmental toxins on sNfL levels

Alondra Betancourt

Undergraduate University: University of Pennsylvania
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 5
Mentor(s): Emily Severance, PhD
Research Focus: COVID-19 and its effects on mental health

Bethel Gebreselassie

Undergraduate University: Johns Hopkins University
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 5
Mentor(s): Glenn Triesmann, MD-PhD
Research Focus: Interdisciplinary care for psychiatric patients with complex comorbidities

Beverly Tudela

Undergraduate University: Johns Hopkins University
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 5
Mentor(s): Cherie Marvel, PhD
Research Focus: Risky behaviors and cerebellar structure/volume in substance-dependent people with HIV (PWH)

Deshaina Strickland

Undergraduate University: Xavier University of Louisiana
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 5
Mentor(s): Leah Rubin PhD, MPH; Asante Kamkwalala PhD
Research Focus: TSPO as a biomarker for neuroinflammation and memory deficits in people with HIV

Diego Javier Rodriguez

Undergraduate University: George Washington University
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 5
Mentor(s): Ethel Ngen, PhD
Research Focus: Molecular imaging biomarkers of radiotherapy-induced brain injury

Katherine Lopez Calderon

Undergraduate University: University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 5
Mentor(s): Amanda Brown, PhD
Research Focus: Osteopontin's modulation of leukocyte responses in HIV-infection

Lisa Olabanji

Undergraduate University: Johns Hopkins University
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 5
Mentor(s): Leah Rubin PhD, MPH; Asante Kamkwalala PhD
Research Focus: Effects of trauma experiences on declarative memory function in people with HIV (PWH)

N’Deye Diop

Undergraduate University: University of Maryland, College Park
JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 5
Mentor(s): Amanda Brown, PhD
Research Focus: Osteopontin as a biomarker for HIV-induced neuroinflammation and cognitive disorders

: Denotes an alumnus of the Johns Hopkins Internship in Brain Sciences

: Denotes a guest participant of the JHNeurophytes Program

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