Meet our Neurophytes

Cohort 1

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

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

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

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

Alaina Jefferson

Undergraduate University: Vanderbilt University

JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 5

Mentor(s): Kate Fitzgerald, PhD (2023), Xiao Lei Zhu (2024)

Research Focus: Effects of environmental toxins on sNfL levels (2023), Intersections Between Gut Microbiome and HIV-Induced Depression (2024)

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 (2023), Steven Doll PhD, Russell Margolis PhD (2024)

Research Focus: Interdisciplinary care for psychiatric patients with complex comorbidities (2023), Characterization of the Interaction Between Huntingtin (Htt) and Junctophilin-3 (JPH3) (2024)

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 (2023), Jinchong Xu PhD (2024)

Research Focus: TSPO as a biomarker for neuroinflammation and memory deficits in people with HIV (2023), CRISPR-Cas9-Mediated Knock-In of HA Tag into PRDM3 Loci in 3xFLAG-Tagged PRDM16 hiPSCs (2024)

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

Felora Bellamy

Undergraduate University: Brown University

JHU Scholar Cohort: Cohort 5

Mentor(s): Amanda Brown, PhD

Research Focus: Characterizing HIV Reservoirs and Neural Inflammation via NFkB Markers in a Humanized Mouse Model

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 (2023), Russell Margolis PhD (2024)

Research Focus: Effects of trauma experiences on declarative memory function in people with HIV (PWH) (2023), Protein Composition of Purification Fractions Collected during the Isolation of Aggregates in Superior Frontal Gyrus of HDL2 Patients

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