Meet the Team

Principal Investigator 

Judy Pa, PhD, Lab Director

Dr. Judy Pa, PhD is the Co-Director of the ADCS and Professor of Neurosciences. Dr. Pa has 20 years of human neuroimaging experience and directs a research lab focused on Alzheimer’s prevention and risk factors. Dr. Pa recently moved from USC in which she was Project Leader of their Program Project Grant on Vascular Contributions to Alzheimer’s disease, Imaging Core Co-Leader of their Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, and Co-Director of the USC SMART-VR Center. One branch of her research program is developing and testing new multi-domain combination interventions using technology, such as virtual reality and remote activity monitoring, with the goal of preserving brain health and cognition.

Dr. Pa is currently the Principal Investigator of 2 ongoing National Institutes of Health behavioral intervention trials with a focus on physical and cognitive activities. She also leads a research program on big data approaches to investigate the interplay between biological sex and APOE genotype, two key risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease. Dr. Pa is an internationally recognized leader in lifestyle-based interventions for brain health and whose research has been featured on MSNBC, US News, Larry King Live, and the Hallmark Channel with Maria Shriver. She is dedicated to mentoring the next generation of scientific leaders, early career researchers, graduate students, and data enthusiasts. In her non-science time, Dr. Pa spends time with her husband, 2 kids, and labrador retriever on the ski slopes.

Pa Lab Mentoring Philosophy

Our academic research lab consists of individuals from a diverse set of genders, ethnicities, life experiences, training, skills, goals, academic stages, and scientific disciplines. We are a research community who values peer-to-peer mentorship, collegiality, and collaboration. Lab members have an opportunity to work on joint projects, as well as distinct individual projects, with the overarching goal of designing and developing new approaches to preventing Alzheimer’s disease. Our lab’s mentoring philosophy can be summarized as ‘holistic mentorship’, where we aim to mentor the whole individual in research training, career development, personal well-being, and resiliency in research. We encourage dissemination of knowledge and a shared decision-making model. We value individual differences, active listening, and constructive feedback. We mentor one another through regular recurring meetings, informal face-to-face time in the lab, and an open-door policy on zoom or in person. We develop, follow, and refine individual development plans as a team. Our expectation is that every lab member engages with one another with the utmost respect and grace, and that they engage in discussion with an open mind.

During my tenure as a faculty mentor, I have mentored more than a dozen early career scientists who have successfully moved on to tenure-track faculty positions, academic fellowships, clinical residency, industry, medical school, and PhD graduate programs at top academic institutions. Being a recipient of outstanding mentorship in my earlier years and still today, I recognize the critical role of dedicated and sound mentorship for shaping our next generation of scientists. 

Our lab goal is to collaborate and develop research projects that fit our scientific mission. During one’s time in the lab, the expectations are to: 1) learn about and contribute to rigorous research in Alzheimer’s disease, 2) develop new skills in data intuition, data analysis and statistical coding, 3) lead or support peer-reviewed publications as first-author or co-author, 4) participate in professional development and networking opportunities at scientific conferences, and 5) gain skills that support one’s future professional trajectory. 

Research Staff

  • Lisette Isenberg, PhD

    Research Scientist

    Lisette received her bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Biola University, and a Ph.D in Cognitive Neuroscience from the University of California, Irvine. Lisette’s research focuses on identifying cognitive and biological markers contributing to decline in neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s disease, and developing lifestyle interventions to keep these changes at bay.

  • Joey Contreras, PhD

    Research Scientist

    Joey received her BA in psychology from UC Irvine, MS in biology from Cal State LA, and doctorate in neuroscience at Indiana University School of Medicine. Joey’s research focuses on using connectomics and neuroimaging data to investigate the relationship between functional connectivity, structural connectivity and important biomarkers related to Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

  • Roshan Ravichandran

    VR Research Engineer

    Roshan received his Bachelor of Technology in Mechanical Engineering from Manipal Institute of Technology and his Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering from USC. Roshan designs and build bikes, integrates it with sensors, interfaces the signals to the VR game and enables synchronous interaction between the physical world and real world. Roshan’s engineering interests are designing and building electromechanical systems, autonomous robots and learning to build robust mathematical models.

  • Kimberly Espejo

    Virtual Reality Study Manager

    Kim received her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from the City College of New York. Kim is interested in examining health disparities in Alzheimer’s Disease and aspires to become a clinical neuropsychologist.

  • Yilei Dong

    Data Systems Analyst

    Yilei is researching how glymphatic system dysregulation contributes to detriments in brain health. She received her BS in neuroscience from USC in 2022. Yilei hopes to pursue a PhD in biostatistics.

  • Joshua Fierro

    Data Analyst

    Josh received his Bachelor of Science in Cognitive Science from UCSD. He is interested in Machine Learning and Neural Computation.

Post Doctoral Scholars

  • Megan Fitzhugh, PhD

    Post Doctoral Scholar

    Megan is interested in understanding how hearing loss increases one’s risk for dementia. She uses hearing tests and brain MRI data to study how hearing loss may alter brain structure and function. Megan received her doctorate in neuroscience at Arizona State University and her bachelor’s and master’s degree in physiology and psychology from the University of Arizona.

Graduate Students

  • Laura Fenton

    Clinical Science PhD Student, USC

    Laura is a fourth year graduate student in the Clinical Science Department at USC. She is interested in modifiable lifestyle factors that can delay or prevent Alzheimer’s disease, and early behavioral manifestations of cognitive decline. She received her B.A. in psychology from UC Berkeley in 2016 and her M.A. in Clinical Psychology from USC in 2021.

  • Nancy Elizabeth Ortega

    Neuroscience PhD Student, UCSD

    Nancy’s research aims to understand the neural mechanisms by which depression increases an individual’s risk for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). She uses brain MRI data, mental health assessments, cognitive tests, and genetic information to explore potential relationships. Nancy received a B.A. in psychology from the University of San Francisco.

  • Joanna Eckhardt

    Neuroscience PhD Student, UCSD

    Joanna is a third year PhD student in the UCSD Neurosciences Graduate Program. She is interested in understanding how circadian rhythms and exercise impact each other, and investigating their role in Alzheimer’s pathology and cognition to identify potential lifestyle interventions for reducing Alzheimer’s disease risk. Joanna received her B.S. in Neuroscience and Cognitive Science from the University of Arizona Honors College, and her M.S. in Neurosciences from UCSD.

  • Cynthia Nyongesa

    Neuroscience PhD Student, UCSD

    Cynthia is a third year PhD student in the UCSD Neurosciences Graduate Program. Cynthia graduated from Pomona College in 2019 with a B.A. in Neuroscience.

  • Vahan Aslanyan

    Biostatistics PhD Student, USC

    Vahan is a fourth-year graduate student in the Population and Public Health Sciences Department at USC. His research interests include non-pharmacological interventions for Alzheimer’s disease, and the design of adaptive randomized controlled trials. He received a B.A. in Statistics and Applied Mathematics from UC Berkeley.

Undergrad Students

  • Marcella Barneclo

    Marcella is a fourth-year undergraduate student at UCSD currently pursuing a Bachelor of Science in Cognitive & Behavioral Neuroscience. Marcella is interested in pursuing a career in the field of Neuroscience and hopes to attend graduate school after completing her B.S. degree.

  • Bryan Pencyla

Lab Alumni

  • Ashwin Sakhare, PhD

    PhD in Biomedical Engineering, USC

    Ashwin Sakare received his B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from North Carolina State University, and his PhD from USC in Biomedical Engineering.

  • Joy Stradford

    Virtual Reality Study Manager

    Joy received her Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a minor in Biology from Howard University and her master of science in Neuroimaging and Informatics from USC. Joy currently manages two clinical trials at USC LONI and UCSD Health. She is interested in examining race disparities in Alzheimer’s Disease, and aspires to become a clinical neuropsychologist.

  • Coralie Phanord

    Virtual Reality Programmer

    Coralie received her Bachelor of Engineering from Dartmouth College. She enjoys studying and developing technology tools that improve mental and physical health.