- Established 3-D brain organoid and 2-D in vitro cultures that were generated from autism patient and family controls, PBMC derived iPSCs.- Developed an in vitro 3-D brain organoid platform that is interrogated with next-gen High Content Analysis tools to identify functional differences in autism patient lines. (Includes MultiElectrode Array (Axion) and ArrayScan XTi. (Thermo))- Developed SOPs for interrogating 3-D mini-brain organoids generated from autism and patient derived human iPSC lines.- Worked with a team to optimize the SOP for maintaining hiPSCs and for differentiating into neural stem cells. - Identified and quantitated differences in electrical activity, cytoskeleton structure, cell motility and other key cellular functions in 2D and 3D neural cultures and continue research to isolate affected cellular pathways.- Rescued network electrical activity in schizophrenia and ASD patient-derived lines in drug discovery studies.- Establish protocols for analyzing large datasets from High-Content Assays and for preparing data for presentations, publications and other written communication of results.- Prepared internal grant applications.- Prepared applications for MD State and private foundation funding.- Reviewed grant applications and journal articles.

Promoting a better understanding of the NeuroDiversity of learning.

Developed Drug Discovery, Regenerative Medicine and molecular pathway-focused projects that established and interrogated in-situ and in-vivo models of hypoxic-ischemic injury.Work includes:- Developed scalable monolayer and long-term organotypic cortical and hippocampal-slice culture models of HI injury as platforms for Drug Discovery, Regenerative Medicine and molecular studies.- Developed, optimized and standardized a spectrum of assays to interrogate the HI-injury model platforms to evaluate the feasibility of therapeutic intervention strategies.- Identified and quantitated the protective effect of mild hypothermia from hypoxia-ischemia induced cell death in HI injury model platforms.- Identified microglia as a putative regulatory agent in the response to Hypoxic-Ischemic like conditions.- Created SOPs for establishing and maintaining aseptic monolayer cultures of mouse-stem and other mammalian cells, and organotypic cortical and hippocampal slice cultures.- Created SOPs for differentiating stem and progenitor cells into oligodendrocytes and other terminal neural phenotypes.- Developed and optimized SOPs for maximizing mouse litter sizes (GFP mice), harvesting precursor oligodendrocytes from E13 mice for in-vitro myelination and regenerative medicine studies.- Devised Data analysis SOPs to identify and quantitate the impact of hypothermia and select therapeutics on HI-induced injury and dissect the underlying molecular mechanisms in HI injury.- Identified select peptide markers as putative predictors of morbidity in clinical HI induced injury.- Currently examining the commercialization potential of the peptide marker.- Prepared applications for the R03 and K01 and co-prepared for the R01 NIH grant mechanisms.- Prepared applications for MD State and private foundation funding.- Reviewed grant applications and journal articles.

See Kennedy Krieger Institute above.

Conducted dissertation research in an NINDS, NIH laboratory.- Pursued M.S. thesis and Ph.D. dissertation research into stem-cell replacement therapy for Parkinson's and other neurodegenerative diseases.- Conducted Regenerative Medicine research transplanting cell lines, derived from enriched neural cultures and transduced with viral vectors, into rodent and monkey Parkinsonian models.

Took courses on campus and at other local universities pursuant to completion of graduate course-load.