Current Lab Group

Dr. Graham Diering
Principal Investigator

 Dr. Diering is the PI of the Diering Lab. He studies the molecular mechanisms of synaptic plasticity, with a particular interest in sleep. Using mouse models of human disease as well as primary cultured neurons, Dr. Diering applies his work to understanding and treating neurodevelopment disorders including Autism and intellectual disability. He broadly studies biochemistry, pharmacology, animal behavior and genetics.

Kylie Joyce
Lab Manager

 

 

 

  

Kylie graduated from UNC in 2023 with a bachelor’s degree in Neuroscience with Honors. She is investigating how sleep disruption influences pathology in neurodegeneration, specifically Alzheimer’s disease. She is interested in the mechanisms underlying amyloid-beta and tau interactions and how these two proteins affect sleep. Outside the lab she enjoys learning languages, playing with animals, and walking around the community!

Julia Sparks Lord
Research Specialist

 Julia is in charge of our mouse colonies and behavioral assays. She is currently concentrating on profiling mouse sleep/wake behaviors through parameters such as sleep time and bout length. Has 3 really fun dogs.

Dr. Jayanth Anantha
Post-Doctoral Fellow

 Jayanth graduated with a PhD in Medicine From UCC, Ireland. At the Diering lab he is interested in deciphering translational regulation at the synapse during sleep and wake states. When not in the lab, he enjoys playing the veena, composing music and cooking!

Dr. Alicia Ravens
Post-Doctoral Fellow

 Alicia graduated with a PhD in Neuroscience from the University of Utah, where she studied the molecular mechanisms of Arc capsid assembly and release during long-term potentiation. In the Diering lab, her research will explore the molecular basis of sleep function by focusing on how the circadian clock and sleep need intersect at glutamatergic synapses. Outside of lab, Alicia enjoys climbing, billiards, cycling, and top-tier video games like Hades and Inscryption. Sundays are best spent with my partner and three cats while we do the crossword fueled by gourds of mate

Liza Chartampila
Graduate Student

 Liza is a fourth-year PhD student in the Neuroscience program. Before beginning her doctoral studies at UNC, Liza completed her B.S. in neuroscience at Washington and Lee University. Outside of research, she enjoys painting, hiking, listening to podcasts, and playing volleyball.

Sarah Jo Sleiman
Graduate Student

 Sarah Jo is a third-year PhD student in the Neuroscience program. She earned her B.S. in Neuroscience with a Computer Science minor at American University and completed a postbaccalaureate fellowship at the NIEHS prior to her doctoral studies at UNC. SJ will be exploring how disrupting sleep drives neurodegenerative phenotypes in aging mouse models. Outside of the lab, she attempts to make traditional Lebanese dishes, and fosters puppies through a local rescue — all while chasing after her own sleep need. 

Michael Ye
Graduate Student

 Michael is a third-year graduate student in the Neuroscience program. He studies the regulation of sleep homeostasis by cortical intracellular signaling in excitatory neurons.

Oleh  Dehtiarov
Undergraduate Student

 Oleh is an undergraduate neuroscience major with a keen interest in understanding the extracellular matrix and its role in autism spectrum disorder. Outside the lab, Oleh enjoys climbing, surfing, and reading. When he’s not scaling walls or doing science, you’ll find him in the kitchen, perfecting the art of cooking—especially crafting the perfect steak, a challenge he approaches with the same dedication as his research.

Lab Alumni

Dr. Shenée Martin
Post-Doctoral Fellow

 Shenée graduated with a PhD from the UNC Neuroscience Department in 2023. She is currently a post doc at the University of Washington.

Sawyer Grizzard
Lab Manager

 

 Now a graduate student in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences Program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Sean Gay
Graduate Student

 Sean graduated with a PhD from the UNC Neuroscience Department in 2024. Now a post-doctoral fellow at Duke University.

Tekla Maisashvili
Undergraduate Researcher

 Now studying abroad in Kazakhstan, completing a Russian immersion language program.

Bradley Allf
Technician

Bradley Allf Headshot

 Now a graduate student in the NC Museum of Natural Sciences Biodiversity Research Lab/NC State University.

Daniel Araya
Undergraduate Summer Intern

 Daniel interned in the Diering lab as a part of the CSS/CSME program during the summer of 2023.. Outside of research Daniel enjoys biking, listening to music, traveling, and making Eritrean dishes.

Maria F. Gonzalez-Aponte
PREP Student

 Now a graduate student at Washington University in St. Louis.

Sarah Monroe
Technician

Sarah Monroe Headshot

 Now a graduate student at Duke University.

Lisa Sharek
Lab Manager

Lisa Sharek Headshot

 Now a researcher at the University of Hawaii.

Kirsten Smith
Undergraduate Researcher

 Now a graduate student at Duke University.

Diane Youngstrom
Undergraduate Researcher

  Now a post-bacc at the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.