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.
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.
Alex is a biomedical scientist focused on neurological and psychiatric disease pathogenesis and therapeutic development. He received his BA and PhD from UC Berkeley with additional research training at UC San Francisco's Memory & Aging Center under the joint mentorship of Dr. Lea Grinberg and Dr. Daniela Kaufer. Alex's training included specialization in neuropathology, epidemiology, comparative neurology, molecular genetics, and cell biology.
Wenda joined the Memory and Aging Center in March 2015 to support 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. Wenda supports and manages the administrative needs in the pathology labs. 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.
Alissa joined the Seeley Selective Vulnerability Research Laboratory in 2011 as a postdoctoral fellow. Her background is in neurodegeneration research. Alissa completed a BSc degree with honors in biomedical science in 2004 and a PhD degree in anatomy in 2009 from the University of Auckland, New Zealand, where she investigated the variable pattern of cortical neuronal loss in Huntington’s disease.
Stephanie joined the Seeley Selective Vulnerability Research Laboratory in October 2007 as an Associate Specialist. Her background is in sleep and circadian rhythms research, including neuroanatomy. She completed a doctorate in neurobiology (CB Saper, Harvard University), a master's in medical science (Harvard Medical School), and a postdoc focusing on narcolepsy (E Mignot, Stanford University/Howard Hughes Medical Institute).
Dr. Seeley attended medical school at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) School of Medicine, where he first encountered patients with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) in 1999, during a research elective with Dr. Bruce Miller. He completed a neurology residency at Harvard Medical School, training at the Massachusetts General and Brigham & Women's Hospitals. Returning to UCSF for a Behavioral Neurology fellowship, Dr.
