MY STORY
I am a 4th year PhD candidate in Environmental Toxicology at the University of California Irvine. My research focuses on understanding the neuroimmune mechanisms underlying chronic neurological disorders, with a particular emphasis on Gulf War Illness.
My work integrates behavioural neuroscience, molecular biology, and immunology to investigate how peripheral immune signals influence brain function. I am especially interested in microglial activation, blood–brain barrier dysfunction, and immune cell infiltration in the central nervous system. Through preclinical models, I aim to uncover mechanistic pathways that contribute to neuroinflammation and synaptic dysfunction, with the long-term goal of identifying potential therapeutic targets.
My journey into research began during my master’s dissertation, where I had the opportunity to work in a reproductive and developmental toxicology laboratory at the ICMR-National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health. During this time, I explored the impact of environmental toxicants on endocrine function through a project titled “Effect of Bisphenol A on steroidogenesis in perinatally exposed rats.”
Using a preclinical model, I investigated how early-life exposure to Bisphenol A influences steroidogenic pathways in both male and female offspring. This experience introduced me to the complexity of how environmental exposures can disrupt biological systems across developmental stages and sparked my interest in mechanistic toxicology.
Since then, my research interests have evolved toward understanding how environmental and immune factors influence disease, ultimately shaping my current work at the intersection of toxicology, neuroscience, and immunology.
I also have experience working in a BSL-2 laboratory setting, where I was involved in detecting COVID-19 infection in human samples. My work included processing oropharyngeal and nasopharyngeal samples and performing molecular diagnostics using real-time PCR, contributing to accurate identification of viral presence during the pandemic.