简介

I received a Ph.D in cell physiology from Rutgers University. As a postdoctoral fellow in Cardiology at the University of Connecticut I was at the forefront of research on the then newly discovered cardiac Na/Ca exchanger and its role in cardiac disease. I switched my research focus after my postdoctoral stint to studying neurodegenerative diseases, specifically Alzheimer's disease and stroke. Here I studied the role of ion transport and calcium ion dysregulation in neuronal death. I soon became interested in zinc and its role in neurodegeneration, but realized that the field was in its infancy compared to studies of calcium ion homeostasis. I have been a successful PI on several previous and current university- and NIH-funded grants to study the role of zinc in neurodegeneration. As PI, I directed the research program, mentored and trained several successful graduate students, and wrote several peer reviewed publications for each project. I have been a successful research collaborator; this is particularly evidenced in research that I undertook studying mechanisms of cognitive decline in aging.