Daria Azizad is an undergraduate Neuroscience student at the University of California, Los Angeles. She is particularly interested in studying molecular mechanisms and biological pathways in relation to human disease. In the Bhaduri Lab in the Department of Biological Chemistry, Daria primarily studies cortical organoid metabolism, glioblastoma invasion in the organoid system, and does bioinformatics projects to investigate cell type through RNA-seq and ATAC-seq data. 

As an Amgen Scholar, Daria is studying the influence of hormones on cortical cell fate specification and metabolism in the organoid system. The cortical organoid model system is an effective tool for the study of cortical development and related pathologies; it lacks many connections that the endogenous brain has, including interactions with the endocrine system. Therefore, the organoid model acts as a “blank slate” in which many factors found in vivo are not present. Thus, through selectively introducing factors to study their role, their function may be further elucidated. Daria’s project aims to better characterize the role of the hormones estradiol, progesterone, and T4 in early cortical development, with the overall goal of investigating the effects of the stated hormones on the metabolic profile, gene expression, morphology, and cell survival in the cortical organoid.

Daria would like to thank the Amgen Foundation and the Bhaduri Lab for the incredible opportunity to develop and execute her independent project and enhance her skills as a researcher.