Meet Our Trainees

Nick's research in Dr. Daniel Tyrrell’s laboratory at UAB focuses on understanding how age-associated changes in CD8+ T cells contribute to chronic inflammation in the aging brain. Specifically, he investigates how granzyme K-expressing CD8+ T cells accumulate in the aged brain and influence neuroinflammatory responses. Outside of the lab, Nick enjoys spending time with his wife and dogs, reading, and going to concerts.

Lauren is a PhD student from Atlanta, GA. She graduated with her B.S. in Biology from North Carolina Central University, in Durham, NC. At UAB, she works in Dr. Anna Thalacker-Mercer’s lab. Her current project focuses on how nutrient availability impacts nuclear localization and chromatin accessibility during myogenesis in muscle progenitor cells (MPCs). She is interested in exploring the age-related impacts of nutrient status on MPC proliferation during myogenesis.

Michael is a PhD student working under Dr. Liou Sun using the nematode model C. elegans for aging and healthspan studies. He received his Bachelors and Masters degrees from the University of South Alabama. His research interest is understanding sex-related differences in aging and healthspan, but he hopes to gain more skills in molecular biology and eventually work with vertebrate models for translational research. His long-term research goal is to investigate biological mechanisms that regulate healthy aging while developing interventions that preserve functions across the mental, social, and physical domains of health.

Macy is a PhD student at UAB. Her research in the lab of Dr. Caesar Hernandez currently investigates therapeutic effects of a dietary supplementation in a rat model of aging and Alzheimer's disease. Macy hopes to build upon her dissertation work by leveraging the mechanisms of action of dietary supplements to develop therapeutic compounds that improve cognition, neuroexcitation, neurometabolism, and pathology.