Biomarkers

Miranda was born and raised in Palo Alto, California and graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in May 2020 with a bachelor of arts degree in molecular and cell biology. At the Memory and Aging Center, she is working as a clinical research coordinator in the Rabinovici Lab to help coordinate studies examining the utility of innovative neuroimaging techniques and other biomarkers for the improved diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease.

Kaan grew up in Istanbul, Turkey, and finished medical school at Istanbul University. Following medical school, he pursued a research fellowship at the Mayo Clinic Jacksonville, where he focused on Alzheimer’s disease genetics, transcriptomics, and blood-based biomarkers with a focus on underrepresented minorities. He did his neurology residency at the University of Iowa, being one of the chief residents in his final year of training.

Dr. Dietz is originally from Penticton, British Columbia. He studied physiology and physics at McGill University in Montreal, where his research focused on characterizing candidate mechanosensitive ion channels using single-cell electrophysiology techniques. While at McGill, he became interested in neurology, neuropsychology, and brain-behavior relationships after reading the classic works of Drs. Wilder Penfield and Brenda Milner at the Montreal Neurological Institute.

Youjin joined the Dementia Imaging Genetics Lab, led by Dr. Suzee Lee, in February 2024 as a Postdoctoral Scholar to investigate potential multimodal neuroimaging biomarkers for early detection and monitoring of frontotemporal dementia. Youjin received her bachelor’s degrees in Psychology and Home Economics Education and a master’s degree in brain and cognitive engineering from Korea University in South Korea.

Aimee Kao, MD, PhD, is a professor of neurology at UC San Francisco in the Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center and is a John Douglas French Foundation Endowed Professor. She is a leader in neurodegenerative disease research and patient care, with expertise in diagnosing and treating Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, Lewy body disease, and frontotemporal lobar degeneration.

Gil Rabinovici, MD, is a professor in the UCSF Department of Neurology and holds the Edward and Pearl Fein Distinguished Professorship in Memory and Aging. He is a behavioral neurologist at the UCSF Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center (Fein MAC), where he cares for individuals with cognitive disorders. Dr. Rabinovici earned his bachelor’s degree from Stanford University and his medical degree from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

Howard Rosen, MD, is a behavioral neurologist and the Dorothy Kirsten French Foundation Endowed Professor for Parkinsonian and Other Neurodegenerative Disorders at UCSF. He specializes in diagnosing and treating patients with memory loss, cognitive impairment, and behavioral changes caused by neurodegenerative conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease, frontotemporal dementia, and progressive supranuclear palsy.

Paul Sampognaro, MD, is a neurologist and researcher specializing in the treatment and research of neurodegenerative diseases. As a faculty member in the Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center, he focuses on understanding the molecular mechanisms of conditions such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other neurodegenerative disorders.

Nicholas (Nick) Schwartz, MD, PhD, is a Behavioral Neurology Fellow at the UCSF Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center. He grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and obtained a BS degree in Neuroscience and Philosophy at Duke University, where his research focused on using egg-laying behavior to model decision-making in fruit flies. He completed his MD and PhD degrees at the Stony Brook University Medical Scientist Training Program (MSTP), where his dissertation work focused on sphingolipid metabolism in neuropathy.

Anup Sonti, MD, is a clinical fellow at the UCSF Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center. A Bay Area native, Dr. Sonti completed his undergraduate studies at the University of California, Davis, where he majored in cell biology. His interest in neurology began during college, fueled by research on brain injury. He later completed a post-baccalaureate Intramural Research Training Award fellowship at the National Institutes of Health, where he investigated the role of adult neurogenesis in mood and behavior.