PEOPLE

Principal Investigator

Gio is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology & Biochemistry and a member of the Center on the Biology of Aging at Brown University. He received his Ph.D. in Biomedical Sciences from the National Autonomous University of Mexico. Then, he moved to Boston to carry out his postdoctoral training at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. There, he was supported by Yerby and Aramont Postdoctoral Research Fellowships, as well as by the K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award from NIH/NIA. Outside of the lab, Gio enjoys nature, workout, swimming, reading, and learning music.

gio@brown.edu

Lab Manager

Erica is the Lab Manager for the Silva-Garcia Lab. She attended Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut, where she was part of an accelerated dual degree program. During her four years at Quinnipiac, she received both her BS in Biology and her MS in Molecular and Cell Biology. Her research interests include neurodegenerative disorders, the role of telomerase in aging, and the use of CRISPR. Outside of the lab, Erica enjoys reading and listening to true crime podcasts.

erica_dinneen@brown.edu

Postdoctoral Fellow

Purbasha hails from Siliguri, a small town in the Terai region of India. She did her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Zoology, followed by a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Berhampur in India. Purbasha is broadly interested in understanding the diversity in aging patterns across life forms. In her current post-doctoral research, she aims to achieve a deeper understanding of the epigenetic basis of aging. Outside of her scientific pursuits, Purbasha is passionate about food and travel and holds a great appreciation for literature and history.

purbasha_dasgupta@brown.edu

Postdoctoral Fellow

Avinash hails from Lucknow, a city renowned for its courtly manners and cuisines in Northern India. He completed his Bachelor of Science degree in Genetics and Genomics from the University of Lucknow, followed by a master's degree in Life Sciences from the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Kolkata, India. He did his Ph.D. in Plant Molecular Biology from the Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beersheba-Israel. Avinash's research interests lie in exploring the molecular basis of aging. In particular, the role of E3 ubiquitin ligases in aging and their implications in neurodegenerative disorders. Outside his academic pursuits, Avinash enjoys macro photography, expressing creativity through drawing caricatures and writing poems and articles for his website.

avinash_sharma@brown.edu

Postdoctoral Fellow

Khairun obtained her Ph.D. from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Israel, where she focused on the role of transcription factor MyoD/HLH-1 and its impact on muscle integrity and proteostasis in C. elegans. As a post-doc, she is working on investigating the complex inter-tissue signaling pathways between muscle and neurons to advance our understanding of how muscles contribute to maintaining neuronal proteostasis and health. She completed her Master’s degree from IISER Kolkata and a Bachelor’s from the University of Delhi, India. Outside the lab, she enjoys most outdoor activities, such as traveling, reading, and journaling.

khairun_nisaa@brown.edu

MCB Graduate Student

Sean is a current Ph.D. student in the MCB graduate program at Brown University. He received his B.S. in Cellular and Molecular Biology from the University of Rhode Island. While at URI, he contributed to research analyzing the probiotic and pathogen interactions between 2 oyster microbiome species. Following this, he worked in the lab of Dr. Kimberly Mowry at Brown, where he studied proteins in frog oocytes involved in the formation of phase-separated condensates known as L-bodies. Sean is very interested in studying the effects of aging perturbations on the transcriptome and genomic profile of organisms and the mechanistic basis behind these phenotypes. Outside of the lab, Sean enjoys playing and listening to music, camping, cooking, and spending time with friends.

sean_ovalles@brown.edu

Master's student

Kira is a Master of Science student in the Biotechnology graduate program at Brown University. She received her B.S. in Animal Science and Technology from the University of Rhode Island. At URI, she contributed to Campylobacter research as a depuration study regarding oyster populations. Kira is very interested in studying inter-tissue signaling, more specifically, the connection between muscles and neurons. She is passionate about understanding how different tissues communicate to support neuronal proteostasis and health, especially in the context of aging and neurodegeneration. Outside of the lab, she enjoys reading, nature, and watching Formula 1 and Hockey.

kira_kassim@brown.edu

Undergraduate Student

Ryan is a freshman from California studying Neuroscience and Philosophy at Brown University. His first exposure to research was in Dr. Thomas Clandinin’s lab at Stanford, where he studied neuronal plasticity at the cellular level. In the lab, Ryan is broadly interested in the molecular mechanisms that underlie the inevitable decline of function as we age. He is excited by questions like: How does neuronal signaling influence transgenerational epigenetic effects? And how are developmental pathways “hijacked” during aging? Outside of the lab, Ryan enjoys spending time outdoors hiking, running, and biking. He is still getting used to the deceptively sunny —but freezing cold— days.

ryanjlee@brown.edu

Undergraduate Student

Caroline is a current undergraduate student studying mathematics and biology at Brown through the APMA-Bio concentration. Most of her time at Brown was spent researching a broad range of mathematics, from the Kepler Conjecture to nonlinear dynamics. Over her last summer as an undergraduate, she shifted her focus to the field of aging, and helped create a metabolomics clock using two comprehensive datasets. Her current project in the lab seeks to uncover how a daf-2 mutation may avoid insulin resistance and increase lifespan and fecundity. Outside of the lab, Caroline enjoys biking down the east bay bike path and finding fruit trees all around Providence.

caroline_kibbe@brown.edu