Nina Djukic graduated from UC Berkeley in May 2018 with a BS degree in Environmental Health & Communications. She currently works with Dr. Joel Kramer, coordinating the Aging & Cognitive Decline project, a longitudinal study to identify the cognitive mechanisms and neural structures that underlie aging-related declines in executive functioning. She is also the study coordinator for Dr.
Karen was born and raised in Nicaragua, where her interest in neuropsychology and community health began. Her passion for travel took her to Uruguay, where she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. While working on her honors thesis, she trained in clinical neuropsychology with mentors Sergio Dansilio, MD; Luis Fontan, MD; and Jorge Lorenzo, MD. During that time, she developed a strong interest toward healthy aging.
Kathleen Drew joined the Memory and Aging Center in October 2005 as a Financial Analyst. Prior to joining the MAC staff, she worked in a wide range of positions including EEOC program analyst at IBM, software quality engineer at PeopleSoft and the truck boss for a gasoline jobber in Colorado.
After hours, she takes classes in mathematics and art trying to get the better of both.
The goal of our research is to investigate mechanisms of longevity, resilience and neurodegenerative disease. Broadly we investigate how aging pathways can confer resilience to a brain and counter neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s. Using genetic mouse models, cell culture methods, and study of human populations using cutting-edge techniques, we study whether longevity-derived mechanisms can pave a path toward development of urgently needed therapies in aging and disease.
Sarah Dulaney earned a master of science degree in gerontological nursing at UCSF and is certified as a Geriatric Clinical Nurse Specialist by the American Nurses Credentialing Center.
Alex graduated from UC Berkeley in 2017 with a B.A. in integrative biology (evolution, ecology, and organismal biology division) and molecular and cellular biology (developmental genetics division). He started at UCSF in Spring 2012 working under Dr. Pierre-Antoine Gourraud in the Multiple Sclerosis Genetics Research Lab. There, he developed skills in computational biology, informatics, and statistics.
Fanny Elahi is a board-certified neurologist with specific expertise in the evaluation and management of patients with cognitive and behavioral disorders due to degenerative brain diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and related disorders. She completed her bachelor's degree at Columbia University, her MD from Icahn School of Medicine, at Mount Sinai, and her DPhil from Oxford University.
