Lupe Rodriguez is a senior scientist and manager of the lab. She received her Bachelor’s of Science in Biological Sciences and minor in Psychology from DePaul University.  After completing her B.S. she completed a post-bacc fellowship at Yale University doing research in brain ischemia and the fibronolytic system. Since then she has been working for several years with Dr. Dong on various projects. More recently, her study of interest is in PAI-1 and Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) and learning how targeting PAI-1 through pharmacological inhibition could potentially become a therapeutic approach for AD. She is currently obtaining her master’s degree in data science with a concentration in artificial intelligence and data engineering from Northwestern University.

Jeff Dunn is a second-year postdoctoral fellow and one of the Northwestern Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center’s Research and Education Component scholars. Jeff currently leads the arm of Dr. Dong’s research program investigating molecular mechanisms underlying behavioral and psychological symptoms in Alzheimer’s disease. His research efforts emphasize the use of a translational neuroscience approach to identify novel therapeutic targets for the alleviation of adverse psychiatric outcomes, and presently focus on apathy in Alzheimer’s disease. Mechanistic areas of interest include neuroimmunity, epigenetics, and their independent and interacting contributions to the regulation of neurotransmitter systems.  

Daniel Fisher is an adjunct post-doctoral fellow who completed his Bachelor’s of Arts in Philosophy and Biology from The University of Texas and his PhD in Neuroscience from Northwestern University. He will complete his MD at Northwestern University in May 2019 and begin residency in psychiatry soon after. Though in the past he has worked on projects as varied as investigating the mechanisms of spinal cord injury to ion channel control of coping strategies, he is currently investigating the Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia using human post-mortem and pre-clinical AD models. His current clinical and research interests center on the psychiatric symptoms that develop in patients with neurological disorders, especially with neurodegeneration.​

Bryan McClarty is currently a third year PhD student in NUIN (Northwestern University Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program). Before his graduate studies, he received his Bachelor’s of Science from DePaul University in Chicago. He is currently working on a project regarding antipsychotic drug efficacy. He is primarily interested in investigating how epigenetic changes in aging contribute to the reduced drug efficacy in elderly patients prescribed antipsychotic drugs. From his current project he has built many skills including: a variety of behavioral assays, western blotting, chromatin immunoprecipitation (chIP), qPCR, scientific and grant writing skills. His thesis project will integrate how epigenetics in aging can contribute to disease progression in Alzheimer’s Disease (AD).

Isabel Haupfear is a second-year medical student and has joined the lab as a research volunteer. She completed her Bachelor of Science in Nursing with a Biology minor at the University of Minnesota—Twin Cities, and after graduating in 2020, she moved to Ireland to attend medical school at Trinity College Dublin. She is currently working on a project investigating the relationship between PAI-1 and AD pathology. Her other interests include investigating the role of stress in AD and exploring potential pharmacologic therapies for neurodegenerative disorders.

Previous Lab Members:

Andrea Locci is a Postdoctoral Research Scientist that joined the lab in 2019. After obtaining a Bachelor’s in Biology and Master’s in Neuropsychobiology, he conducted his PhD studies in 2012 at University of Cagliari, Italy. He finished his PhD in Neuroscience in 2016 and moved to the United States to pursue a research career.​ Using his expertise in animal models, behavioral pharmacology, and molecular biology, his main goal is to understand the link between sex hormones and stress in Alzheimer’s disease and mood disorders.

 

Chris Gallerdo is a Post-doc who recently joined the lab late 2018. His initial interest in neuroscience research began during his undergraduate studies at DePaul University in Chicago. Upon graduation, he briefly worked in Dr. Dong’s lab at Northwestern University before pursuing a PhD in Pharmacology at the University of Minnesota – Twin Cities. His graduate studies spanned human and mouse work on Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and Age-related Macular Degeneration. His broad interests on the intersection of aging, psychiatry, and neurology greatly influenced his return to Dr. Dong’s wonderful lab. Outside of research, he enjoys working out, playing with cats, traveling, and reading.

 

Rachel Keszycki is a first-year student in the Clinical psychology  PhD Program of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Before attending Northwestern, she administered neuropsychological assessments to adult patients and conducted research with both human and animal subjects in the areas of addiction, Alzheimer’s disease, and traumatic brain injury. Her primary research and clinical interests include neuropsychology, dementia (particularly Alzheimer’s disease), and behavioral and psychological symptoms associated with cognitive decline.