UCSF’s innovative, collaborative approach to patient care, research and education spans disciplines across the life sciences, making it a world leader in scientific discovery and its translation to improving health.
Ayesha graduated from the University of Arizona with a Bsc degree in Psychological Sciences where she primarily involved herself in researching family relationships and COVID-19 tracing and public health interventions. While on campus, she was also involved in outreach through founding and leading her club, Women in Psychology.
Tia graduated from UC Berkeley in 2020 after completing a dual degree in Integrative Biology and Molecular Environmental Biology. She started her research journey in 2018 as a research assistant at the Grinberg Lab practicing various wet lab techniques and focusing on the locus coeruleus' role as a biomarker for Alzheimer's disease.
Maria joined the Memory and Aging Center in February 2021 as Administrative Manager to provide operational, analytical and administrative support to the Neurodegenerative Disease Brain Bank. She has a BA degree in education, with minors in mathematics and Spanish literature from the University of Pennsylvania. Before joining the MAC, Maria managed education programs, business solutions and strategic initiatives in the healthcare, insurance and financial services industries, both nationally and internationally.
Athena studied Integrative Biology and Classics at UC Berkeley. She was involved in archaeological research and assisted the excavation of a prehistoric cemetery in Greece. On campus, she was a volunteer EMT and worked as a chef for her housing cooperative. Her experiences volunteering in hospice and nursing facilities led her to the Memory and Aging Center, where she assists patients, families, and caregivers with the autopsy program.
Song Hua Li has a BS degree in biotechnology from UC Davis and has been working as a histotechnologist since 2015. She joined the Grinberg Lab in June 2019 and runs the histology experiments.
Alex started off in the neuropathology core at UCSF’s Memory and Aging Center in 2013 under the mentorship of Prof. Lea T. Grinberg. There, he developed interests in the factors that influence selective vulnerability underlying early Alzheimer’s disease stages and associated neuropsychiatric manifestations. Now a Ph.D. Candidate at UC Berkeley, he is co-advised by Prof. Grinberg and Prof. Daniela Kaufer and continues his focus on neurodegenerative disease vulnerability.
Wenda joined the Grinberg lab in March 2015 to support the group's efforts in researching brain aging and associated disorders. Prior to moving to the United States in 2014, Wenda worked as an executive assistant in a private company in Hong Kong for 19 years, assisting in the overall management and operation of the company. In the Grinberg lab, Wenda supports and manages the administrative needs. She intends to continue working in the field of medical research, particularly in the specialty of brain disease.
Dr. Spina received his medical degree from the University of Catania, Italy. He completed a neurology residency at the University of Siena, Italy from which he also obtained his doctorate degree on mechanisms of neurodegeneration. He was trained in neuropathology of dementia syndromes at the Indiana Alzheimer Disease Center, Indianapolis in the laboratory of Dr. Bernardino Ghetti. Later, he completed an internship in internal medicine and a neurology residency at Indiana University. Dr.
Norbert Lee joined Dr. Seeley's Selective Vulnerability Research Laboratory as a Staff Research Associate in 2010. He assists with brain banking and other histology technician functions.
Dr. Lea Tenenholz Grinberg is a neuropathologist specializing in brain aging and associated disorders, most notably, Alzheimer’s disease and the neurological basis of sleep disturbances in neurodegenerative diseases. Currently, she is a John Douglas French Alzheimer’s Foundation Endowed Professor at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center, part of the Executive Board of the Global Brain Health Institute and a member of the Medical Scientific Advisory Group for the Alzheimer’s Association.
