Executive Council Officers

Blerta is a biomedical scientist. She came from Europe in 2020 and started her postdoctoral fellowship with Prof. Solnica Krezel in the Developmental Biology department. She is working on exploring mechanisms of early development by using both zebrafish and human embryonic stem cells. Early in 2021, she became a member of the postdoc society, and she is eager to support and welcome new postdocs into this group. She has also been serving as the Networking committee chair for close to two years.

Andrea is an astrophysicist who graduated with a Ph.D. from the University of Erlangen-Nürnberg (Germany) in 2022. Currently serving as a postdoctoral researcher in the physics department, Andrea’s research focuses on unraveling the mysteries of active galaxies, which are celestial objects fueled by supermassive black holes. Andrea employs a comprehensive approach to study these fascinating phenomena by utilizing various telescopes that cover the entire electromagnetic spectrum. In addition to her academic pursuits, she actively engages in public outreach, sharing her enthusiasm for astronomy with others and fostering a love for the subject among the wider community.

Tyler is a cancer biologist currently investigating clonal evolution in myeloproliferative neoplasms and the mutational trajectory leading to secondary leukemia. The overall aim of his post-doctoral fellowship is to describe the clonal architecture of MPN disease progression to leukemia which could lead to early detection and improved disease surveillance. He is passionate about translating complex discoveries at the bench into understandable, tangible science to reach a broader audience for the ultimate goal of clinical application and improving patient outcomes. Tyler is an adjunct professor at Washington University where he greatly enjoys teaching biomedical problem-based learning. Tyler received his Ph.D. in Biological Biomedical Sciences from Oakland University where he published work on the role blood stem cells play in tumor maintenance before and after radiation therapy.

Rannyele (Ranny) is working on establishing single cell sequencing techniques to investigate germline cell regeneration in Platynereis. Ranny is a Brazilian scientist passionate about annelids and she received her PhD from the Autonomous University of Madrid, Spain, where she worked on regeneration in syllid annelids.

As a clinical scientist, Ash is committed to a career that emphasizes the two-way bridge between research and clinical practice. At WUSM, she engages in precision neuroimaging research that is primarily focused on individuals with traumatic brain injury (TBI). Her research aims to identify individual differences in brain morphology and their association with cognitive abilities and co-occurring biopsychosocial symptoms in TBI. Information at this level can inform the development of both personalized as well as manualized interventions that promote cognitive restitution and improve psychosocial functioning. Ash received her PhD in Clinical Psychology at the University of Illinois-Urbana Champaign in 2021.

Burke is a neuroscientist studying cortical homologies between human and non-human primates with structural and functional neuroimaging. His research seeks to improve the common spatial framework used to map findings between species and better understand the recent evolution of the hominid cortex. Burke received his Ph.D. in Computational Neuroscience from the University of California, San Diego in 2023, where he studied human corticocortical structural connectivity as well as spontaneous intra- and extracranial electrophysiological correlativity.

Shweta is a postdoc at the DiAntonio Lab in the Department of Developmental Biology. She did her PhD at the Indian Institute of Science Education and Research (IISER) Pune, India. For her doctoral work, she explored the role of non-neuronal cells in the progression of a motor neurodegenerative disease called Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). Currently, at the DiAntonio Lab, she studies the mechanisms that define axon degeneration.