Student News: Summer 2014 Awards, Internships and More

Ten MMC students from the Division of Science recently landed research internships (some with pay) and awards in the neuroscience field, thanks to the efforts of Professor Deirtra Hunter-Romagnoli.

Tess Verneuil Tess Verneuil ’14 is completing research started Jan 2014 in Dr. Morishito Hiro’s lab in the Department of Psychiatry, Neuroscience, and Ophthalmology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Dr. Hiro’s research lab focuses on developmental brain plasticity and cognition using mice. Tess was recently accepted into the competitive Neuroscience MSc Program at King’s College of London. She will be attending Fall 2014.

Nicole Margallo ’14 worked in Dr. Matthew Shapiro’s Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience of Memory Laboratory at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai which focused on how the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, and other brain areas contribute to memory in experimental animal models. Nicole was accepted into the Master’s of Science Dance/Movement Therapy Program at Pratt Institute. She will be attending Fall 2014.

Genesis Lipe ’14 received one of two 2014 Student Research Internship Awards sponsored by the New York City-Southern New York Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Genesis will receive a $2,000 award and is working in the research laboratory of Dr. Tim Vartanian at Cornell University Medical College exploring infectious bacteria as a potential cause of Multiple Sclerosis.

Iris Platt ’14 is interning in the lab of Dr. Morishito Hiro in the Department of Psychiatry, Neuroscience, and Ophthalmology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Dr. Hiro’s research lab focuses on developmental brain plasticity and cognition using mice.

Ashley O’Brien ’14 is working with Dr. Vanna Zachariou in the Department of Neuroscience and Pharmacology and Systems Therapeutics at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine (paid internship).  This research lab focuses on the understanding of chronic pain related depression and the study of the mechanism via which antidepressant drugs alleviate pain. There are also projects on drug addiction, and the way chronic pain influences addiction.
 
Yolianda Zackschewski ’15 was awarded a spot in a competitive nine-week program at the Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC). She is working in the laboratory of Dr. Jane Martin, Director, Neuropsychological Testing and Evaluation Center at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.

Gabriela Perez ’15 is working with Dr. Yasmin Hurd in the departments of Psychiatry, Pharmacology and Systems Therapeutics, and Neuroscience at Mount Sinai Hospital School of medicine. Her multidisciplinary research lab investigates the neurobiology underlying addiction disorders and related psychiatric illnesses.

Sophia Gutchinov Sophia Gutchinov ’17 will be working with Marissa Barrera (MS, MPhil, MSCS, CCC-SLP) at the New York Neurogenic Speech Language Pathology Clinic.  Work here focuses on the role that exercises plays on fatigue and language processing in individuals with Multiple Sclerosis.

Aleksandra Tercjak Aleksandra Tercjak ’15 will be working with Dr. Kristen Brennand in the Psychiatry and Neuroscience Department at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Dr. Brennand’s work focuses on using induced pluripotent stem cells to study schizophrenia.

Published: July 17, 2014