Postdoctoral Researchers
Ishita Ahmed, PhD
Department of Public Health
Faculty Mentor:
Ankan Choudhury, PhD
Department of Human Sciences and Design
Current Project(s):
Dr. Choudhury is researching roles of pathogenic bacteria like enterotoxigenic B. fragilis and F. nucleatum in the gut microbiome to initiate and propagate gut inflammation diseases and their link in colorectal cancer. He is developing targeted antimicrobial therapy against F. nucleatum with a bioengineered probiotic delivery platform and engineering outer-membrane vesicles of enterotoxigenic B. fragilis as scaffolds for RNA payload. He is also using bioinformatics and statistical analysis to create predictive models based on fecal microbiome networks and the diet data of people suffering from colorectal cancer and receiving chemotherapy, to assess the progression of the disease and/or success of the therapy given to them.
Education:
- Jadavpur University (2013) - BS, Pharmaceutical Technology
- Jadavpur University (2015) - MS, Pharmacy
- Baylor University (2021) - PhD, Biology
Faculty Mentor:
Research Interest(s):
- Biology (Cell and Molecular, Health and Diseases)
- Microbiome and Bioinformatic Analysis
Hasna Fathima, PhD
Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders
Current Project(s):
Dr. Fathima investigates binaural integration of acoustic cues in bimodal stimulation, where a cochlear implant electrically stimulates one ear while the other ear receives acoustic signals through a hearing aid. This approach, known as bimodal stimulation, is often recommended to enhance speech perception. However, it remains unclear whether the acoustic and electrical inputs are consistently complementary or under what conditions they may conflict. Dr. Fathima is currently designing experiments to examine the effects of bimodal stimulation on formant frequency integration using vowel identification tasks.
Education:
- All India Institute of Speech and Hearing (2010) - MSc, Audiology
- Manipal Academy of Higher Education (2024) - PhD, Audiology
Faculty Mentor:
Research Interest(s):
- Vowel integration in bimodal cochlear implants
- Effect of electrode insertion depth on speech perception in bilateral and bimodal cochlear implants
Lauren Fischbacher, PhD
Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders
Faculty Mentor:
Kaitlynn Fraze, PhD
Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders
Current Project(s):
Dr. Fraze researches reading interventions for young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) using functional texts, like texts, emails, and evites. The intervention is called Functional Reading Activities to Motivate and Engage (FRAME). Dr. Fraze is currently assisting in conducting social validity interviews, working with the analysis team, and leading a scoping review to extend the current literature on reading interventions for individuals with IDD.
Education:
- University of South Florida (2017) - BS, Exceptional Student Education
- University of South Florida (2019) - MS, Autism and Severe Intellectual Disabilities
- George Mason University (2024) - PhD, Special Education
Faculty Mentor:
Research Interests:
- Reading interventions
- Severe disabilities
- Adapted instruction
Carla Nascimento, PhD
Department of Health, Human Performance, and Recreation
Current Project(s):
Dr. Nascimento is exploring gene expression and mitochondrial function in LLC-induced cachexia models. She is studying the effects caused by tumor and/or chemotherapy drugs commonly used for treatment in cancer patients aim to produce scientific evidence that may drive advances in the field for the development of new protocols for treatment on cancer.
Education:
- São Paulo State University (2009) - MS, Motricity Science
- São Paulo State University (2014) - PhD, Motricity Science
Faculty Mentor:
Research Interest(s):
- Biological Markers
- Aging
- Neurodegenerative Diseases
- Cancer
- Sarcopenia
- Cachexia
- Inflammation
- Oxidative Stress
- Gene Expression
- Factors associated to chronic diseases
Chatnapa Panusatid, PhD
Department of Health, Human Performance, and Recreation
Faculty Mentor:
Sandra Wright-Hackler, PhD
Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders