About Me

I am a neuropsychopharmacologist studying how changes in our brain lead to neurodevelopmental disorders or psychiatric illnesses. My research focuses on screening for better drug therapeutics to treat and help people living with mental illnesses.  

I am currently a Neurobiology PhD candidate at Duke University researching in the labs of Kafui Dzirasa, MD, PhD and Marc Caron, PhD. My graduate research combines approaches from cellular biology, engineering, psychiatry, and neuroscience to investigate how dopamine affects learning and reward evaluation. I use techniques such as in vivo electrophysiology, confocal imaging, immunohistochemistry, protein protein interactions,  and mouse behavior to answer my research questions. I study a range of psychiatric illnesses and neurodevelopmental disorders including: schizophrenia, depression, anxiety disorders, and autism spectrum disorders.

Creativity makes you a scientist, but access to resources definitely helps. I mentor students all ages ,from elementary school to late college, to help them reach their science goals. As an Afrolatinx scientist, it's very important for me to amplify the voices of other marginalized or underserved people. Empowering marginalized scientists and engaging with members of our community can start filling in research gaps.  For example, African American, Latin, and Indigenous people represent less than 4% of DNA information used to study diseases in genome wide association studies.

I aim to improve science communication, talking about science is a way that makes sense to all audiences. There is power in language. Learning how to describe our mind, body, and health allows us to advocate for more inclusive science policies and ethical usage of medicine, technology, and science.