OUR TEAM
ERIK S. MUSIEK, MD, PhD
Principal Investigator
Charlotte & Paul Hagemann Professor of Neurology, Washington Univ. School of Medicine
Previous Training: BS, College of William & Mary; MD, PhD, Vanderbilt Univ. School of Medicine; Residency in Neurology, Hospital of the Univ. of Pennsylvania; Dementia Fellowship, Washington Univ. School of Medicine.
Erik grew up in Hanover, NH and attended the College of William & Mary as an undergraduate. He joined the MSTP at Vadnerbilt, and completed his PhD in Pharmacology in the lab of Dr. Jason Morrow. During Neurology residency at Penn, he worked in the lab of Dr. Garret FitzGerald. He came to WashU as a postdoctoral fellowship in David Holtzman's lab, and a clinical dementia fellow in the Knight ADRC. He started his own laboratory at WashU in 2014. In addition to his basic research, Erik sees patients in the Memory Diagnostic Center and is an investigator in the Knight Alzheimer's Disease Research Center.
Erik is also Co-Director of the Center On Biological Rhythms And Sleep at WashU, a multidisciplinary research center focus on understanding the role of sleep and circadian rhythms in human health.
Click here for WUSTL Neurology biography
JULIE DIMITRY, MS
Senior Lab Manager/Scientist
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Previous training: B.S. and M.S., Univ. of Illinois. Julie joined the lab in 2015 after many years in the department of Biochemistry managing the lab of Dr. Bill Frazier. Julie brings experience and molecular biology expertise to the lab, and beyond her bench research projects, she also manages the lab and takes care of most things.
MELVIN KING
Ph.D. Student - Neuroscience
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Previous training: B.A., Dartmouth College. Melvin joined the lab as a PhD student in Neuroscience in Spring 2019. Originally from Fort Worth, TX, Melvin studied Chemistry at Dartmouth and completed a post-bacalaureate research program at the Univ. of Rochester before coming to WashU. His thesis work focuses on the role of SCN in AD pathology, as well as understanding microglial regulation of alpha-synuclein pathology.
ASHISH SHARMA, PhD
Postdoctoral Associate
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Previous training: Ph.D., School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Shoolini University, India. Ashish joined the lab in Spring 2021. He completed his PhD thesis research on the effect of constant light on AD-like neuropathology in rats in the lab of Dr. Rohit Goyal. His current research examines the effects of different forms of circadian disruption and sleep inducing drugs on amyloid and tau pathology in mice.
CYNTHIA CHEN
Ph.D. Student- Neuroscience
Previous training: B.S., UCLA. Cynthia joined the lab in Spring 2021 as a PhD student in Neuroscience. After graduating form UCLA, she worked as a technician in the lab of Dr. Berislav Zlokovic at USC, modeling the blood-brain barrier using iPSCs. Her thesis work examines the impact of circaidan desyncrhony in tau and synuclein models, and the regualtion of brain lipids by the circadian clock.
COLLIN NADARAJAH
MSTP student
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Previous Training: B.A., Washington University. Originally from Dallas, Collin completed an Honors Thesis in the lab as an undergraduate and stayed on as a technician in the lab for two years before departing in Summer 2019 to become an MSTP student at Washington University. Now he has returned to pursue his PhD in the lab, studying REV-ERB proteins in neurodegeneration, as well as the effects of complement proteins in AD.
SABRINA CLEMENS
Ph.D. Student- Neuroscience
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Previous training: Bachelors of Science and Arts, University of Texas at Austin. Sabrina joined the lab as a PhD student in Neuroscience in Fall 2023. Originally from San Antonio, TX, Sabrina studied Neuroscience in Austin, TX and worked as a Research Assistant at Brigham & Women's Hospital in Boston, MA before starting graduate school.
RYEONGHWA KANG, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral Associate
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Previous training: Ph.D., Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Republic of Korea. Ryeonghwa conducted her doctoral research focusing on the molecular and functional roles of neuronal genes implicated in neurodevelopmental disorders, especially ASD. Through this work, she developed a growing interest in neurodegenerative diseases and aims to explore their underlying mechanisms further.
SOHUI PARK
Ph.D. Student- Neuroscience
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Previous training: B.E. & M.S., Yonsei University. Sohui joined the lab in Fall 2024 as a PhD student in Neuroscience. After earning her Bachelor of Engineering and Master of Science degrees from Yonsei University, Sohui worked as a research scientist in a biotech company focusing on drug discovery for Alzheimer’s disease. She is a co-mentee with Dr. David Holtzman.
SU YAN
Ph.D. Student- Neuroscience
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Previous training: B.S., Peking University. Su joined the lab as a PhD student in Neuroscience in Summer 2024. Originally from Jiangsu, China, Su studied glial cells at Peking University and did her undergraduate thesis on the role of glial TLR4 in neuroinflammation.