Danielle Cervasio

 Advisor: Dr. Scott Laughlin

Small molecule synthesis and regulation of astrocytes

Danielle Cervasio is originally from Queens, NY but migrated slightly north to to pursue a BS in Biology with a minor in Chemistry at SUNY Cortland. Her time at Cortland was actively spent playing recreational sports, tutoring, and performing lab work. She worked on a collaborative chemical biology project, which focused on identifying fatty acid compound structures isolated from the mandibular glands of an invasive caterpillar in order to develop a biological control agent in the southern US. Here at Stony Brook, she is pursuing her PhD in the lab of Dr. Scott Laughlin (laughlinlab.com), where she focuses on leveraging organic chemistry to study and characterize neural circuitry. Using small molecules to target glial cells called astrocytes, which are important for maintaining brain homeostasis, Danielle is interested in studying how these cells influence the function of neural circuits. In identifying how astrocytes are contributing to specific circuits, there exists the potential to develop more targeted therapies for neurological and psychiatric diseases where neural function is compromised. When not studying the complex circuitry that exists throughout the brain, Danielle enjoys traveling, hiking, backpacking, reading, sharing laughs, and drinking wine with friends.

Recent Publications:

Preston, A. N., Farr, J. D., Tan, K. C., Cervasio, D. A., Butkus, L. R.  & Laughlin, S. T. 2018.
Design principles for cationic, astrocyte-targeted probes. Accepted, in press at Chembiochem. https://doi.org/10.1002/cbic.201800692