Lab Members

Stefan obtained his PhD from the Humboldt University of Berlin under the supervision of Prof. Helmut Kettenmann focusing on electrophysiological properties of microglia in health and disease. Initially started as a side project, he became interested in microglial dysregulation in AD and continued his work as a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Prof. Brian MacVicar at the University of British Columbia. After working on neuronal oxidative stress and microglial interaction in a mouse model of AD he joined the Nygaard lab to continue this line of research in 3D human iPSC-derived model system in close collaboration with the MacVicar lab. In this joint effort he aims to dissect molecular pathways leading to oxidative stress in AD to find novel therapeutic targets in a novel human cell culture model system.

Stefano completed his PhD training in Neuroscience in 2019 at the Milano-Bicocca University located in Italy. During those years he worked on the biological heterogeneity of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) focusing on the involvement of neuroinflammation and Aβ in autopsic human brains and transgenic mice. This experience helped him realize the limits associated with the current pathological models of AD, and pushed him to find alternative and innovative research paths. In 2020, Stefano started his journey as postdoctoral fellow by exploring the potential of organ-on-chip and microfluidic devices at the Italian National Research Council. in 2021 he joined The Nygaard Lab as a postdoctoral fellow and is currently working on developing innovative 3D bioprintinted drug screening platforms for the study of AD.

Chris was born and raised in Victoria, B.C. and completed his BSc at the University of Victoria with a major in Biology. During his undergraduate degree, Chris researched in the lab of Dr. Stephanie Willerth, and worked on the engineering of pluripotent stem cell and diseased cell neural tissue models. Specifically, he developed a 3D-printed, hydrogel-based model for glioblastoma multiforme. He then completed an MSc in the Nygaard lab, where his research focused on investigating the cellular aspects of progranulin-mutant frontotemporal dementia using patient-derived, reprogrammed stem cells that had been differentiated into a neural lineage. Chris then joined UBC’s combined MD/PhD program. Chris’s PhD project focuses on developing 3D, patient-derived, pluripotent stem cell-based neural tissue models of Alzheimer’s disease for the investigation of disease pathophysiology and screening of potential therapeutic drugs.

Nakita (Wenji) obtained her BSc. from McMaster University with a major in neuroscience. After finishing the third year of her undergraduate study, Nakita joined the Rogulja lab in the Harvard medical school as a student researcher to study circadian rhythms and sleep. During the time in Harvard, Nakita participated in two research projects, one focused on investigating the effect of environmental temperature on circadian periodicity, the other intended to elucidate the function of clock neurons and explore the dynamics of circadian neuronal activity underlies the resilience of nighttime sleep. In 2021, Nakita joined the Nygaard lab as a master’s student in neuroscience to start the research in frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Using both mouse model and 2D human iPSC-derived neural tissue model, Nakita intends to develop a CRISPR-mediated upregulated progranulin via AAV delivery system of as a therapeutic modality for GRN-FTD.

Declan received his BSc from Simon Fraser University with an Honours in Behavioural Neuroscience and a Minor in Molecular Biology & Biochemistry. During his undergraduate degree, Declan worked in Dr. Tim Audas’ lab and purified two RNA helicases to untangle the process of stress-induced amyloidosis. Following this project, Declan researched in Dr. Michael Silverman’s lab on the role of molecular motors in neurological diseases using iPSC-derived neurons in 2D, which were differentiated via both small-molecule and viral-induced TF overexpression-based methods. Now as a PhD student in Neuroscience, Declan is utilizing cortical orgnaoids to study pathogenic consequences of peripheral insult on the central nervous system.

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Shelley obtained her PhD from the Chinese University of Hong Kong. She then immigrated to Canada and joined Dr. Kevan Jacobson’s lab where she studied how probiotics and the submucosal neuropeptide vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) ameliorate the disruption in intestinal epithelial barrier integrity induced by enteric pathogens. In 2016, Shelley joined the Nygaard lab and involved in the research of patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cell reprogramming and differentiation into central nervous system cell types for drug screening and the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease (AD).

Ada is originally from California and joined the lab in her first year of undergrad at UBC. In the lab she is learning to do different cell culture techniques, immunostainings, and confocal imaging. Ada is now working under the mentorship of Stefan to study the effects of oxidative stress in Alzheimer’s disease using a 3D human cell culture model. Her current project aims to examine the mechanisms of therapeutic antibodies on microglial phagocytosis of amyloid beta.

Chief Scientific Officer at Opaila

Assistant Professor at Simon Fraser University