Ryann Fame PhD (she/her) joined the faculty at Stanford University in 2022. Following her undergraduate degree in Biology and Chemistry at the College of William and Mary, Dr. Fame completed a PhD in Molecular and Cellular Biology at Harvard University. She completed her postdoctoral fellowships at The Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research at MIT and at Boston Children’s Hospital Pathology Department. Her research program encompasses the early neural stem cell niche, neural tube closure, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), metabolism, and cortical neuronal development. As a stem cell and developmental molecular biologist, Dr. Fame is dedicated to broad collaboration focused on translating an understanding of neural development and CSF biology into regenerative strategies for the treatment of neurodevelopmental disease. Outside of research, she is an avid swimmer and cyclist who sometimes crochets or plays the clarinet.

Luke (he/him) completed his doctoral training in toxicology at Purdue University (West Lafayette, Indiana). Under the supervision of Dr. Wei Zheng, he studied the mechanism by which choroid plexus (a heavy metal accumulation organ upon overexposure) modulates the subventricular zone adult neurogenesis and olfactory function through secretion of extracellular vesicles. Outside the lab, Luke enjoys basketball.
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Hi! I'm Hannah (she/her) and I'm a sophomore from the Chicago area planning on studying Chemistry. I originally became interested in neuroscience once I found out I had a body-focused repetitive behavior (BFRB) and got involved in advocacy work and research about these stigmatized disorders. I'm currently learning how to program so I can use computational models to simulate effects of and therapies for neurological disorders in hopes of finding better future screening tools and treatments. I'm involved in the Stanford Undergraduate Neuroscience Society, Cardinal Free Clinics, and Stanford Women in Medicine. In my free time, I love going on long walks, baking brownies, and listening to Taylor Swift!
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Blake (they/them) is a graduate student in the neuroscience PhD program at Stanford. They received a BS in brain and cognitive sciences in 2020 from MIT, where they studied adult neurogenesis and profiled recurrent thalamocortical networks. These days, Blake explores how cerebrospinal fluid impacts brain development. In their spare time, Blake makes bad presentation slides, attempts various crafts, pursues the affection of nearby cats, and practices fire arts.

Hi, I'm Arjun (he/him)! I started my Ph.D. in Developmental Biology in 2022. I am originally from the east coast and graduated from the University of Michigan in 2021 with a degree in biomedical engineering and minors in philosophy & mathematics. I did my undergraduate research in Dr. Cheng-Yu Lee’s lab and studied gene regulation & fate determination in fly neural stem cells. I am currently interested in how chromatin state of forebrain progenitors changes during neural tube closure and the role of gene regulation on stem cell function. In my free time, I enjoy being a mediocre chess player, following the news, consuming large amounts of panda express, and being an avid Patriots fan.

Hi! I’m Sophia (she/hers), a graduate student in the Developmental Biology department. I’m originally from Arizona and completed my undergraduate degree in biochemistry at MIT in 2023. While at MIT, I studied collagen folding and proteostasis in healthy and diseased states using both direct biochemical methods as well as modeling via iPSC-generated spheroids, or, as we coined them, “chondronoids.” While rotating in the Fame lab, I initiated use of Pellegrini et al.’s choroid plexus organoid protocol, and I look forward to utilizing these organoids to better understand choroid plexus function and development. Outside of lab, I enjoy watching and documenting movies on Letterboxd (non-snobbishly I promise), baking and sharing sugary goods, and, like Blake, seeking the affection of any and all nearby cats.