By Michelle Jaffee
Four new postdoctoral associates have joined the McKnight Brain Institute’s Gator NeuroScholars program to investigate a wide range of neurological conditions: neuroplasticity techniques after injury; brain stimulation for cognitive impairment; mechanisms of language processing in aging; and how metabolic pathways influence neurodegeneration.
Now beginning its third cohort, Gator NeuroScholars is a signature program of the MBI. This enhanced postdoctoral fellowship is designed to boost academic research careers in the neurosciences, featuring a competitive stipend, professional development funds and opportunities for mentorship by leaders in the field.
Joining the six current Gator NeuroScholars are: Alysha T. Bogard, Ph.D., and Vanessa Frei, Ph.D., funded by an anonymous family foundation; Sadi Quinones-Al-Muhtaseb, Ph.D., funded by the Nancy A. Fackler Endowment for Brain Research; and Skylar Elizabeth Stolte, Ph.D., now the second Alzheimer’s Research Foundation Gator NeuroScholar.
Founded in 2023, Gator NeuroScholars already has two alumni: Adithya Gopinath, Ph.D., now a research assistant scientist at UF, and Andrea Merchak, Ph.D., now an assistant research professor at Indiana University.
“Gator NeuroScholars attracts top scientists who are working to address some of the most complex neurological conditions that affect quality of life,” said MBI Director Jennifer Bizon, Ph.D. “Their work spans pressing challenges in veterans’ health, Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias and other conditions that impact millions. Each day in the lab, they are identifying critical underlying factors related to brain health and paving the way toward new treatments.”
To learn more about Gator NeuroScholars and ways to support educational opportunities at the McKnight Brain Institute, contact Caitie Deranek Stewart at stewartc1@ufl.edu.
Department of Physical Therapy
Dr. Alysha Bogard
My work integrates neurophysiology, biomechanics and biomarkers of responsiveness to advance precision neurorehabilitation strategies.
Department of Psychology
Dr. Vanessa Frei
My work combines EEG, MRI and psychophysiological methods to identify early biomarkers and modifiable risk factors of cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.
J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering
Dr. Skylar Stolte
My research focuses on noninvasive brain stimulation as a potential intervention for cognitive impairment related to normal aging or pathological disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia.
department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Dr. Sadi Quinones-Al-Muhtaseb
I research neuron subtype-specific metabolic constraints underlying selective vulnerability and neurodegeneration.
