Please click on the name of each student to learn more about them.
Email: rbattershell@arizona.edu
Advisor: Sean Limesand, Ph.D.
Research Interests: Developmental origins of health and disease, metabolism, cardiovascular health, and endocrinology
Personal Interests: Running, reading, and playing guitar
Publications:
Hamilton S, Terentyeva R, Veress R, Perger F, Nichtova Z, Bannister M, Wang J, Quiggle S, Battershell R, Gorr MW, Györke S, Choi BR, George CH, Belevych AE, Csordás G, Terentyev D. Increased Intermembrane Space [Ca2+] Drives Mitochondrial Structural Damage in CPVT. Circ Res. 2025 Oct 23. doi: 10.1161/CIRCRESAHA.125.326841. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 41127903.
Email: dchrisenberry@arizona.edu
Advisors: Mingyu Liang, Ph.D.
Research Interests: Vascular physiology, genetics, stem cell culturing, polymorphisms involved in development of hypertension
Personal Interests: I love exercising, nearly all sports, board games, trivia nights, and teaching physiology!
Email: ceellis@arizona.edu
Advisor: Pawel Kiela, DVM, PhD
Research Interests: Relationships between diet, gastrointestinal function, inflammation and metabolism.
Personal Interests: Playing piano and classical guitar, painting, drawing, walking, cooking, being surrounded by nature.
Publications:
Murillo F, Arrieta M, Ellis C, Dobles E. (2018). Homeostasis del magnesio: Implicaciones fisiológicas y patológicas. Revista médica de la Universidad de Costa Rica 11(2).
Email: espinoazf@arizona.edu
Advisor: Christopher Arellano, Ph.D.
Research Interests: Intersection of gait rehabilitation, neuromechanics, and sports performance.
Personal Interests: A dedicated sports fanatic. Whether it’s soccer, football, or just about anything competitive, always ready to join in or cheer from the sidelines.
Awards: University Fellow, 2025-26
Email: espinoza5@arizona.edu
Advisor: Ashley Snider, PhD
Research Interests: Immune cell mediated inflammation, gastrointestinal distress, inflammatory bowel disease, sphingolipid metabolism, sphingolipids in immune cells, neutrophil and macrophage dys/function, sex differences in disease
Personal Interests: Collecting pins, spending time with friends and family, board/card/video games, drawing and writing, dancing, karaoke
Awards:
2025 - Poster Award, ALVSE Research Showcase, ARCS Foundation Scholar Award, Phoenix Chapter, Certificate of Recognition, FEBS/13th International Ceramide Conference; FEBS Youth Travel Fund Award, FEBS/13th International Ceramide Conference; Herbert E. Carter Travel Award, University of Arizona GIDPAC
2024 - Travel Award, Cancer Research Training & Education Coordination, University of Arizona Cancer Center; Steven M. Horvath Research Recognition Award, American Physiological Summit; Poster Award, University of Arizona Translational Medicine Symposium
2023 - Poster Award, University of Arizona GIDP Research Showcase, Travel Award, 12th International Ceramide Conference,
2022 - Training Grant, NIH T32 Initiative for Maximizing Student Development, Fellowship Award, University of Arizona Graduate Access
Publications:
Espinoza KS, Snider AJ. Therapeutic Potential for Sphingolipids in Inflammatory Bowel Disease and Colorectal Cancer. Cancers (Basel). 2024 Feb 15;16(4):789. doi: 10.3390/cancers16040789. PMID: 38398179; PMCID: PMC10887199.
Espinoza KS, Hermanson KN, Beard CA, Schwartz NU, Snider JM, Low BE, Wiles MV, Hannun YA, Obeid LM, Snider AJ. A novel HSPB1S139F mouse model of Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease. Prostaglandins Other Lipid Mediat. 2023 Dec;169:106769. doi: 10.1016/j.prostaglandins.2023.106769. Epub 2023 Aug 23. PMID: 37625781; PMCID: PMC10843462.
Email: nferguson@arizona.edu
Advisor: Maya Kaelberer, PhD
Research Interests: Gut-brain signaling, metabolic disorders, sensory neuroscience.
Personal Interests: Hiking, cooking, traveling.
Awards: Graduate Awards: T32 Cardiovascular Training Grant (2026); Scholarship to attend the Marine Biological Laboratory Neurobiology Course (2025)
Undergraduate Awards: Silver Award, W.A. Franke Honors College, The University of Arizona (2023); Galileo Circle Scholarship, College of Science, The University of Arizona (2022); John G. Hildebrand Scholarship, Neuroscience and Cognitive Science Department, The University of Arizona (2022); Academic Year Highest Academic Distinction, The University of Arizona (2020, 2021, 2022, 2023); Dean’s List with Distinction, College of Science, The University of Arizona (2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023); AZ Wildcat Tuition Award, $120,000 Scholarship, The University of Arizona (2019 - 2023)
Publications:
Hasnah R, Makhlouf M, Zambon M, Arietti M, Ferguson NC, Moussa EA, Kiesling Altún YG, Scialdone A, Saraiva LR, Kaelberer MM. A sensory map of the gastrointestinal tract. In review. 2025
Physiological Impacts of a High-Fat Diet on the Retina in Male and Female Mice, Abstract published in the Undergraduate Research Opportunities Consortium’s 2022 Abstract Review. The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, August 2022.
Email: temarafletcher@arizona.edu
Advisor: Rotations
Research interests: Metabolism, treatment interventions, translational medicine
Personal interests: Gardening, Reading, Biking, Baking & Cooking
Awards: Initiative for Maximizing Student Development (IMSD) / NIH T32
Publications:
Bruner, K.R., Byington, I.R., Marx, T.J. et al. Glucagon receptor signaling is indispensable for the healthspan effects of caloric restriction in aging male mice. GeroScience (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11357-025-01899-w
Marx, T. J., Bruner, K., Ghimire, S., Fletcher, T., & Stern, J. H. (2025). 12 weeks of voluntary wheel running restores glucagon sensitivity in middle-aged mice [Preprint]. bioRxiv. https://doi.org/10.1101/2025.05.23.655872
Email: williamkwon@arizona.edu
Advisor: Jared Churko, PhD
Research Interests: Cardiology, Physiology
Awards: T32 Ruth L. Kirschstein Institutional National Research Service Award
Publications:
Iwanski JB, Lawal OS, Kwon WT, Vazquez I, Churko JM. Minimal Component, Protein-Free, and Cost-effective Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Cardiomyocyte Differentiation. Curr Protoc. 2025 Feb;5(2):e70099. doi: 10.1002/cpz1.70099. PMID: 39932462; PMCID: PMC11834755.
Email: jmazzone@arizona.edu
Advisor: Fiona Bailey, PhD
Research Interests: Blood pressure regulation, sex-differences in cardiovascular disease, exercise.
Personal Interests: My animals, puzzles, soccer, writing, & chocolate.
Email: mmiscevic@arizona.edu
Advisor: Haijiang Cai, Ph.D.
Research Interests: Neural circuits in gut-brain communication, neural circuits of eating behaviors
Personal Interests: Social Latin dances, hiking (nature and urban), visiting local coffees shops and bookstores, learning about art and art history, community service.
Publications:
Chvilicek MM, Seguin A, Lathen DR, [], Maša Miščević, []. Large analysis of genetic manipulations reveals an inverse correlation between initial alcohol resistance and rapid tolerance phenotypes. Genes, Brain and Behavior. 2024;23(1):e12884. doi:10.1111/gbb.12884
Email: dayannaramunoz@arizona.edu
Advisor: Richard Simpson, Ph.D.
Research Interests: Exercise Physiology, Performance, & Exercise Immunology
Personal Interests: Running, lifting, and coaching.
Publications:
Muzaffar-Khan, A., Munoz, D. et al. Design and Testing of PEM hydrolysis system for producing Hydrogen and Oxygen propellants for CubeSat Applications. Aerospace Research Central (2021). https://arc.aiaa.org/doi/10.2514/6.2021-4185.
Geng, J., Kim, K., Zhang, J. et al. Stochastic transport through carbon nanotubes in lipid bilayers and live cell membranes. Nature 514, 612–615 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature13817.
Awards: NIH T32 Initiative for Maximizing Student Development (IMSD)
Email: rplett@arizona.edu
Advisor: Scott Boitano, Ph.D.
Research Interests: Respiratory physiology, cellular physiology, asthma, protease-activated receptor-2 (PAR2)
Personal Interests: Playing hockey, sports
Email: fpolk@arizona.edu
Advisor: Paulo Pires, PhD
Research Interests: Vascular Physiology, Alzheimer's Disease
Personal Interests: Fishing, hiking, snowboarding, and any sport that involves a ball and a racquet.
Publications:
Polk, F. D., Hakim, M. A., Silva, J. F., Behringer, E. J., & Pires, P. W. (2023). Endothelial KIR2 channel dysfunction in aged cerebral parenchymal arterioles. American journal of physiology. Heart and circulatory physiology, 10.1152/ajpheart.00279.2023. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1152/ajpheart.00279.2023
Peters, E. C., Gee, M. T., Pawlowski, L. N., Kath, A. M., Polk, F. D., Vance, C. J., Sacoman, J. L., & Pires, P. W. (2022). Amyloid-β disrupts unitary calcium entry through endothelial NMDA receptors in mouse cerebral arteries. Journal of cerebral blood flow and metabolism: official journal of the International Society of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism, 42(1), 145–161. https://doi.org/10.1177/0271678X211039592