What inspired you to pursue aging research?
My maternal grandparents survived into their nineties; it was truly inspiring to see how they maintained a great quality of life for as long as they did. I want to be able to help people conserve their cognitive abilities for as long as possible to keep communities and families strong and vibrant.
In your view, what does AFAR mean to the field, and what does it mean, for you, to receive an AFAR grant now?
Being awarded this grant is very significant for me. It’s the first grant I have been awarded as an independent investigator, so it will allow me to continue to build the foundations of my lab and set up the future directions of our research. I’m relatively new to the field of aging, so the AFAR-Glenn grant provides me with important mentorship as I find my place in the field.
What is exciting about your research’s potential impact?
Ultimately, we predict this research will yield new potential therapeutic targets to delay the onset of age-related cognitive decline and neurodegeneration by understanding how we can boost neurons’ inherent mechanisms that maintain cellular health and function.
How would you describe your research to a non-scientist?
Brain cells (neurons) are unique cells that need to maintain their function and survive throughout your lifetime; The mechanisms the neurons use to stay healthy decline during aging. We are researching how these mechanisms are regulated during aging in different neuron types so that we can develop strategies to help neurons stay healthy for longer during aging, delaying age-related cognitive decline and neurodegeneration.
