Meet the Team

Principal Investigator 

Judy Pa, PhD, Lab Director

Dr. Judy Pa, PhD is Professor of Neurosciences at UC San Diego, where she serves as Director of the Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study (ADCS) and holds the Shiley Endowed Chair of Alzheimer’s Disease Research in honor of the late Dr. Leon Thal. Dr. Pa has more than 20 years of human neuroimaging experience, Alzheimer’s disease, mild cognitive impairment, and lifestyle factors and directs a research lab focused on factors underlying dementia prevention. This work serves our lab’s primary goal of precision prevention; to better understand which protective factors best serve who and why so we may get closer and closer to tailored interventions and treatments.

One branch of Dr. Pa’s active research program focuses on developing and testing new multidomain combination interventions using technology, such as virtual reality and remote activity monitoring, with the goal of preserving brain health and cognition. Another NIH supported area of Dr. Pa’s work focuses on harmonized, big data approaches to investigate the interplay between biological sex, genetics like APOE4, and Alzheimer's disease risk factors.

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 human and canine family.

Please read Dr. Pa and the lab’s mentoring philosophy below.

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

    Project Scientist

    Joey received her BA in psychology from UC Irvine, MS in biology from Cal State LA, and PhD in Medical Neuroscience from Indiana University School of Medicine. Her research examines health disparities in Alzheimer’s disease (AD), focusing on racial and sex differences in inflammation and AD biomarkers. Drawing on her expertise in resting-state functional connectivity and other neuroimaging measures, she integrates imaging and blood-based biomarkers to better understand population-specific profiles of AD risk.

  • Adam Gardner

    VR Research and Development Engineer

    Adam earned his Bachelor of Science in Human Biology from Minnesota State University. He helped engineer educational tools that integrate augmented reality and 3D-printed models to teach core concepts in biology and chemistry. He also developed VR software to visualize complex biological systems. As a designer, Adam creates everything from sculptures and illustrations to animations with the goal of communicating exciting science to the public.

  • Joshua Fierro

    Data Analyst

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

Postdoctoral Fellows

  • Joanna Eckhardt

    Joanna is a postdoctoral researcher in the UCSD Department of Neurosciences, where she also assists with clinical research coordination for the lab’s ongoing studies. She is interested in understanding how circadian rhythms, sleep, and physical activity interact, and investigating their roles in Alzheimer’s disease 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 Ph.D. in Neurosciences from UCSD in June 2026.

Graduate Students

  • Emily Ager

    Public Health PhD Student, SDSU/UCSD

    Emily earned her B.S. in Food and Nutrition from the University of Alabama in 2022 and her M.S. in Nutritional Sciences from San Diego State University in 2025. She is currently a second-year doctoral student in the SDSU/UC San Diego Joint Doctoral Program in Public Health, concentrating in Health Behavior. Her research focuses on lifestyle interventions that increase healthspan, with a particular emphasis on women’s health.

  • Drea Gabay

    Clinical Psychology PhD Student, SDSU/UCSD

    Drea is a PhD student at the SDSU/UC San Diego Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology. She is in the neuropsychology track. Her research focus is on women's health and aging, particularly in the role of estrogen and its role within pre-cursors to Alzheimer's and early dementia, utilizing neuropsychological testing and neuroimaging protocols.

Undergraduate Students

  • Aadya Matthews

    Student Worker

    Aadya is an undergraduate student at University of California San Diego majoring in Biochemistry with minors in Data Science and Mathematics. She is interested in computational neuroscience, machine learning, and the use of behavioral data to understand brain health. Aadya aspires to pursue graduate study in health data science and work in healthcare technology.

  • Ashley Kang

    Student Worker

    Ashley is an undergraduate student at University of California San Diego majoring in Public Health with a concentration in Medicine Sciences and minoring in Cognitive Science. She is interested in neuroscience, cognition, and emerging technologies related to brain health and human behavior. Ashley aspires to work in the neurotechnology industry.

  • Emma Reiner

    Student Worker

    Emma is a third year undergraduate student at San Diego State University, in the ADAR program. She is majoring in psychology with an emphasis in neuroscience and a minor in public health. She is interested in aging research, specifically Alzheimer's disease and related dementias.

  • Keir Nykamp

    Student Worker

    Keir is an undergraduate student at San Diego State University majoring in psychology. He is part of the Advancing Diversity in Aging Research (ADAR) program. His interest in neuroscience include traumatic brain injury and the effects of depression on the brain and plans to work in a clinical setting in the future.

Collaborators

  • Megan Fitzhugh, PhD

    Assistant Professor

    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. She is an Assistant Professor of Neurosciences at UC San Diego and an active collaborator of the Pa Lab.

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 achieved her B.S. in psychology from Howard University and her M.S. in neuroimaging and informatics from the University of Southern California. Joy is currently a doctoral student in the SDSU/UCSD Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology, studying under the mentorship of Dr. Erin Sundermann and Dr. Sarah Banks. Her research focus is on health disparities in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias and she is currently exploring how lifestyle factors and cumulative disadvantage impact tau accumulation and cognitive outcomes in Black women.

  • 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.

  • Vahan Aslanyan

    PhD in Biostatistics, USC

  • Marcella Barneclo

    Clinical Research Coordinator

    Marcella received her Bachelor of Science in Cognitive & Behavioral Neuroscience from UCSD. She is interested in pursuing a career in the field of Neuroscience.

  • 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.

  • Laura Fenton

    Clinical Science PhD Student, USC

    Laura received her B.A. in psychology from UC Berkeley in 2016 and her M.A. in Clinical Psychology from USC in 2021. She is currently a doctoral candidate in clinical psychology at the University of Southern California. She is interested in modifiable lifestyle factors that can delay or prevent Alzheimer’s disease, and early behavioral manifestations of cognitive decline.

  • Cynthia Nyongesa

    Neuroscience PhD Student, UCSD

    Cynthia received her B.A. in Neuroscience from Pomona College and her PhD in Neuroscience from the UCSD Neurosciences Graduate Program.

  • Nancy Elizabeth Ortega

    Neuroscience PhD Student, UCSD

    . Nancy received a B.A. in psychology from the University of San Francisco and her Ph.D. in Neuroscience from 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.

  • Kimberly Espejo

    Virtual Reality Study Manager

    Kim received her BA 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’s research focused on relationships of the glymphatic system and cerebral blood flow with modifiable lifestyle factors such as sleep and physical activity in context of brain health and aging. She received her BS in neuroscience from USC in 2022. Yilei is now a PhD student in the Neuroscience Training Program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, with a broad focus in using neuroimaging and data-driven approaches to study biomarkers of cognition and behavior and how they are modified in neurological and neurodevelopmental conditions.