Prinicipal Investigator
Jacob Michaelson, PhD
Title/Position
Roy J. Carver Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience
Dr. Jake Michaelson is a Roy J. Carver professor of psychiatry and neuroscience and director of the division of computational and molecular psychiatry at the University of Iowa. His lab studies the effect of genetic variations on the development of the brain, with specific applications in autism and language impairment. He earned his B.S. and M.S. in biological engineering at Utah State University before earning his PhD in computational biology at the Technische Universität Dresden in Germany in 2010. After his time in Germany, he joined the lab of psychiatric geneticist Jonathan Sebat at UC San Diego, where he completed his postdoctoral training and published several of the earliest papers dealing with whole genome sequencing in autism. In 2013 he joined the faculty at the University of Iowa, and his research is supported by NIMH, NIDCD, NICHD, NHGRI, the Simons Foundation, the Roy J. Carver Trust, and the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation.
Graduate Students & Trainees
Lucas Casten, B.A.
Title/Position
Graduate Research Assistant
Lucas joined the lab as a graduate student from the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Genetics in 2021, after previously working in the lab as a clinical research assistant. He is broadly interested in the genetic variation that makes us all so unique. As a result, his research projects focus on: language ability, risk for psychiatric conditions, and their shared biological underpinnings.
He graduated from Cornell College with a BA in Psychology and Behavioral Neuroscience. Much of his free time is spent watching sci-fi movies and exploring the Midwest.
Muhammad Elsadany, B.S.
Title/Position
Graduate Research Assistant
Muhammad's journey in the lab began with a deep-seated interest in mental health conditions. As he immersed himself in the research environment, he realized the importance of understanding neurodiversity more deeply. This newfound awareness fueled his dedication to understanding the links between genetics, cognition, and mental health.
Although Muhammad’s background was focused on computational biology and genomics, he’s interested in learning different methods and techniques. He’s currently working towards an expanded knowledge in linguistics, computer vision, neuroimaging, genetic analyses, and data science.
In the lab, Muhammad's focus crystallized around the notion of using language as a metric for aspects of human experience that defy easy measurement. Whether it's cognition or mental health problems, he envisions language as a powerful tool for decoding the ineffable.
Driven by a desire to bridge the gap between science and accessibility, Muhammad aims to develop tools and assessments that harness the power of language. His ultimate goal? To create a more inclusive and understanding world where everyone's voice is heard, regardless of their neurodiversity or background.
P.S. Muhammad believes in the importance of our lab mission and its impact on individuals. After spending 3 years in lab, he realized how much he “fits in” with the populations we study and got diagnosed with autism at the age of 25!
Grace Kim, M.D., Ph.D.
Title/Position
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Grace Kim is an INSPIRE postdoctoral fellow in Psychiatry. In the Michaelson lab, she applies computational genomics to investigate the genetic underpinnings of neurodevelopmental disorders, with a current emphasis on sleep issues in autism spectrum disorders (ASD).
She earned her MS in bioengineering and PhD in neuroscience at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, as well as her MD at the University of Illinois at Chicago prior to joining the Michaelson lab for her postdoctoral training. Her academic journey, rooted in psychiatry, bioengineering, and neuroscience, has fueled a passion for computational psychiatry, especially in decoding the genomic and epigenomic landscapes of psychiatric conditions. She is interested in learning to leverage advanced machine learning and data integration techniques to bridge functional genomics with clinical decision-making tools and to advance our understanding of psychiatric disorders.
In her downtime, she enjoys traveling and has embraced the challenge of foil fencing after years practicing kumdo/kendo.
Ying Hsu, Ph.D.
Title/Position
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Ying Hsu is a postdoctoral fellow in Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences specializing in Bardet-Biedl Syndrome, a model ciliopathy. She is working with the Michaelson laboratory to understand the intersection of psychiatric disorders and ciliopathy. Additionally, she is interested in studying genetic variants that impact neurodegeneration. She earned a B.S. and an M.S. degree in Bioengineering from the University of Illinois at Chicago, and a Ph.D. degree in Molecular and Cellular Biology from the University of Iowa. In her free time, Ying enjoys boardgaming, tennis, volleyball, and has a large collection of plants.
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=WFNhtpYAAAAJ&view_op=lis...
Ashton Tener, B.A., B.A.
Title/Position
Research Intern
Ashton joined the lab as an undergraduate student volunteer in 2021. He graduated from the University of Iowa in 2022 with a BA in Psychology and a BA in English, then began working full time in the lab in 2023. He is interested in the intersection between sex/gender and neurodevelopmental disorders, including ADHD and Autism.
In his free time, Ashton enjoys longboarding, watching TV, and cooking.
Research Assistants
Camilla Strathearn, B.S.
Title/Position
Clinical Research Assistant
Camilla is one of our Clinical Research Assistants here at the Michaelson lab. After earning a B.S. in psychology from BYU-Hawaii, Camilla explored professional experience in the realms of social work and wilderness therapy where she worked closely with individuals navigating complex behavioral and mental health challenges. This work inspired her pursuit of psychiatric research to gain broader insight into mental health, with a particular emphasis on working towards understanding the needs and challenges of at-risk individuals from a biopsychosocial perspective. She is excited to assist in this research which aims to help individuals develop their own unique innate strengths as well.
Here in the lab, Camilla coordinates brain and behavior research, which involves participant recruitment, conducting interviews and assessments, assisting with MRI scans, and managing data.
In her free time, Camilla enjoys cycling down hills, carving wood into spoons, and spending time with friends and her cats.
Tayler Sanderson, B.S., B.S.
Title/Position
Clinical Research Assistant
Tayler is one of our Clinical Research Assistants assisting with the Genetics of Giftedness and Twice-Exceptionality research here in the Michaelson Lab. A University of Iowa alumna, she graduated in spring 2022 with a BS in psychology, a BA in biology, and a minor in environmental sciences. Since graduating, Tayler has worked as a project manager for an environmental testing company, but is now excited to delve into the world of research as she pursues graduate school.
In her free time, Tayler enjoys caring for her houseplants, spending time with her friends and family, and walking her beloved “chi-poo” named Ivy.
Undergraduate Research Assistants
Juliann Pawlowski
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Juliann Pawlowski is from Plainfield, Illinois and is currently a sophomore studying biomedical engineering. She joined the Michelson lab in January 2023 because of her profound interest in understanding what makes a person unique. In the lab, she puts the skills she learns in her classes to use with real life data, with hopes of contributing work to unraveling and improving the world of science!
In her free time she loves to travel and go on hikes, especially with her dogs Hazel and Stella. She also loves to binge-watch a good tv show!
Ava Russ
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Ava is a first-year undergraduate student studying chemistry on the pre-med track. She joined the Michaelson lab because she has a passion for genetics, specifically the heritability of intelligence. Outside of the lab, she can be found crocheting, looking at the stars, and annoying her dogs.
Trevor Jackson
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Trevor is a 4th year undergraduate student pursuing a BA in viola performance on the pre-medicine track. He joined the lab to gain experience in computational research methods and to study language in neurodiverse populations. Outside the lab, Trevor can be seen working out, going on runs, reading a book, or playing chess.
Shannon McCleary
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Shannon is currently getting a B.A. in Psychology with two certificates: Public Health and Resilience and Trauma-Informed perspectives. In the lab Shannon is learning about data management and computer programming.
In her free time, she likes to watch women’s basketball, exercise, and spend time with friends.
Sayedeh Iravani
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Sayedeh is a third-year undergrad pursuing a BA in Psychology. She joined the Michaelson Lab to gain skills, knowledge, and experience thinking scientifically. She has a passion for understanding neuropsychological disorders.
Outside of academics, she enjoys reading nonfiction books and trying new Kombucha flavors.
Rotation Students
Lab Alumni
Annie Gleason, B.S., M.S.
Title/Position
Graduate Research Assistant
Annie joined the lab in May 2023 as a graduate student from the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Genetics.
Courtney Ries, B.S.
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Courtney joined the lab in September 2021 and assisted with DNA extraction in the wet lab.
Ethan Bahl, PhD
Title/Position
Graduate Research Assistant
Ethan recently received his PhD in Computational Genetics from the University of Iowa and is doing postdoctoral work at WashU.
Madison Trog, B.S.
Title/Position
Clinical Research Assistant
Maddy is currently working on her PhD in School Psychology at UIowa.
Taylor Thomas, PhD
Title/Position
Graduate Research Assistant
Taylor is currently pursuing post-doctoral work in Boston, MA.
Sydney Kramer
Title/Position
Clinical Research Assistant
Sydney is currently in graduate school studying psychiatric and behavioral genetics.
Leo Brueggeman, M.D., PhD
Title/Position
Alumni
Leo was one of our MD/PhD student in Iowa's MSTP program and a graduate research assistant in the Michaelson lab.
Tanner Koomar, PhD
Title/Position
Graduate Research Assistant
Tanner was the first graduate student to join the Michaelson Lab as part of the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Genetics.
Noah Brown
Title/Position
Research Assistant
Noah is currently enrolled in the Biomedical Informatics graduate program at Harvard University.
Heli Desai
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Chris Harris
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Chris is currently working as a Case Manager.
Brady Hoskins
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Brady is currently working as a Data Scientist with a concentration in predictive modeling in healthcare.
Elisabeth Karafili
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Elisabeth is currently working as a Pediatric Speech-Language Pathologist.
Carolyn Lo
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Carolyn spent four semesters working in the Michaelson wet lab.
Florencia Lowenthal
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Florencia is currently working as a Bilingual Speech-Language Pathologist.
Alex Syverud
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Austin Uhl
Title/Position
Undergraduate Research Assistant
Matthias Richter
Title/Position
Rotation Student
Matthias was a German exchange student in the Michaelson Lab through the RISE Program.
Rachel Schroeder
Title/Position
Rotation Student
Rachel rotated through the Michaelson Lab as part of the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Neuroscience at UIowa.
Lea Tiyavorabun
Title/Position
Rotation Student
RISE Program - German Exchange Student
https://www.daad.org/en/find-funding/undergraduate-opportunities/research-internships-in-science-and-engineering-rise/
Josie Ullsperger
Title/Position
Rotation Student
Josie was part of the Behavioral-Biomedical Interface Program.
Iman Dehazangi, PhD
Title/Position
Postdoctoral Researcher
Iman is currently employed at Morgan State University.
Dabney Hofamman
Title/Position
Research Assistant
Dabney is a recent graduate of the Counseling Psychology graduate program at the University of Iowa.
Jin-Young Koh
Title/Position
Research Assistant
Jin-Young Koh is currently enrolled in the Biomedical Engineering graduate program at the University of Iowa.
Brooke McKenna
Title/Position
Clinical Research Assistant
Brooke was the Michaelson Lab's first Clinical Research Assistant. Since moving on from the lab, Brooke has gone on to receive her PhD in Clinical Psychology at Emory University.
Kaleb McKone
Title/Position
Web Application Developer
Kaleb is currently working as a software engineer.
Natalie Pottschmidt
Title/Position
Clinical Research Assistant
Natalie is currently enrolled in the Clinical Psychology graduate program at Penn State University.
Shabana Sidhu
Title/Position
Clinical Research Assistant
Shabana is currently employed by the University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics.
Savantha Thenuwara
Title/Position
Research Assistant
Savantha is currently enrolled in the Biomedical Sciences graduate program at Iowa State University.
Kévin Vervier, PhD
Title/Position
Alumni: Postdoctoral Researcher
Kévin is currently employed at the Sanger Institute, UK.