Fields of Research

Drug discovery and precision medicine
Gene architecture and action
Molecular basis of disease

Research Summary

I study RNA-mediated mechanisms of neurodegeneration in Huntington’s disease and related repeat expansion disorders.

Research Statement

Repeat expansion disorders such as Huntington’s disease are caused by the abnormal expansion of short nucleotide repeats and are characterized by progressive neurodegeneration and a lack of effective disease-modifying therapies. My research investigates how repeat-expanded RNAs contribute to disease by forming toxic aggregates that disrupt RNA processing, chromatin organization, and genome maintenance. Using spatial interactome discovery approaches, including Oligonucleotide-mediated proximity interactome MAPping (O-MAP), I aim to define the molecular composition of these RNA aggregates in disease-relevant neuronal models and brain tissue, with the goal of identifying new therapeutic targets.

Awards and Honors

National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI) T32 Training Grant (2024)