Team Members

Riyi Shi is the Mari Hulman George Endowed Professor of Applied Neuroscience in the Department of Basic Medical Sciences and Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering. Dr. Shi received his MD at Shanghai Jiao-Tong University School of Medicine (China) and PhD in neuroscience from Purdue University. Dr. Shi is specializing in uncovering the mechanisms of central nervous system trauma and diseases as well as instituting new treatments through innovative experimentation and pioneering new strategies in the field. His research contributions include originating the use of double sucrose gap technique for recording action potential conduction, establishing the methods of neuronal membrane resealing by polyethylene glycol (PEG), identifying acrolein as a key pathological factor in neuronal trauma and degenerative diseases, and establishing novel animal blast injury models. Two of his therapies have went to clinical trials, testing patients with spinal cord and head trauma, and multiple sclerosis.

Brad received his BSE in biomedical engineering from Purdue University and his PhD in neuroscience from Purdue University. Brad’s research interest span from the study of disease states associated with neurological injury to the development of assistive technologies as an effective means of ameliorating functional caused by disability. His work has been published in various research projects in his lab include oxidative stress, assistive technology, physiological telemonitoring, STEM inclusion for persons with disabilities, and 3D visualization of SCI and TBI. Brad is longtime Boilermaker and member of CPR since he was as undergraduate researcher more than two decades ago.

Dr. Jerusalem received is his Diplôme d’Ingénieur from Ecole Nationale Supérieure de l’Aéronautique et de l’Espace in France, his Master of Science in aeronautics and astronautics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) at Cambridge, MA, and his PhD in computational mechanics of materials from MIT. Antoine is a Fellow of St. Hugh’s College at the University of Oxford, and EPSRC Fellow, and World Economic Forum Young Scientist. His research includes computational mechanics of materials and brain and neuron multiphysics (TBI, ultrasound neuromodulation, etc.).

Dr. Rodgers is an MD, Fellow of the American Associations of Neurological Surgeons (FAANS), and Fellow of the American College of Surgeons (FACS). He received his medical degree from the Indiana School of Medicine where he also completed his residency. Dr. Rodgers is associated with Marian University College of Osteopathic Medicine and Indiana University School of Medicine in the Department of Neurological Surgery. Richard is a Harvey Cushing Clinical Fellow from the Neurotrauma and Neurocritical Care at the Miami Miller School of Medicine. He is interested in traumatic brain and spine injury.

Dr. Tong received his BS in physics from Beijing University, China. He later received his PhD in biomedical engineering from Tufts University. Dr. Tong\'s group utilizes multiple imaging modalities to identify and understand the neuronal and physiological changes in homeostasis that correlate to various diseases. The main imaging modalities used in his lab are magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS), electroencephalogram (EEG). Through concurrent multi-modal imaging studies on humans and animals, they try to deepen our understandings of the interactions between 1) neuronal and physiological oscillations; 2) brain function and perfusion; 3) central and peripheral spontaneous fluctuations.

Melissa Lewis received her VMD from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine. She completed her residency in Neurology and Neurosurgery at North Carolina State University and is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine in the specialty of Neurology. She also completed her PhD in Comparative Biomedical Sciences at North Carolina State University. Her main research interests include spinal cord injury, neurotrauma and neuroimaging, frequently utilizing translational large animal models of injury and disease.

Koji Uchida is a Professor of the Laboratory of Food Chemistry, Department of Applied Biological Chemistry, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo. His interests are interdisciplinary and span food sciences, lipid peroxidation, natural antibodies, and innate immunity. In the past years, his team has made important discoveries in the field of covalent protein modification with endogenous electrophiles. His laboratory in Tokyo is currently defining the fucntional role of immune cells and pattern recognition proteins, including multi-specific natural antibodies as well as complement factors and apolipoproteins as a sensor of oxidation-derived epitopes bearing electronegative potentials.

Casey is interested in using an interdisciplinary approach to study how physical properties (mechanical, electrical, magnetic, chemical, etc...) couple in cells, the extracellular matrix (ECM, the scaffold that maintains tissue structure), and tissues, and how we can exploit this coupling to control cell behaviors for applications in disease treatment. She obtained a dual major in Biological and Mathematical Sciences from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, with an undergraduate thesis studying cell-cell communication using experiments and mathematical modeling, supervised by George Edick. During two summer internships and for a year after her Bachelor’s, she worked as a Research Trainee in the Integrated Mathematical Oncology (IMO) Department of Moffitt Cancer Center, supervised by Dr. Alexander Anderson, Dr. Mark Robertson-Tessi, and Kimberly Luddy, using both cell culture experiments and mathematical modeling to study how tumors evolve to survive immune system attack. Afterwards, Casey completed a DPhil in Condensed Matter Physics, Applied Mathematics, and Systems Biology at the University of Oxford, supervised by Prof. Sonia Contera and Prof. Sarah Waters, using cutting edge atomic force microscopy to study how properties of the ECM help regulate cell behaviors. After her DPhil, she completed a Postdoc in Engineering Sciences at Oxford, supervised by Prof. Antoine Jerusalem, studying how the physical properties of neurons control neuronal firing, and how anesthetics and ultrasound alter these properties. She joined Prof. Shi’s lab in August, 2023, and looks forward to studying how the physical properties of neurons change and relate to their function after injury, and using this information to improve our understanding of how brain injury propagates and causes other neurological conditions.

Dr. Edmond Rogers received his MS in neurophysiology from Dr. Guenter Gross at the University of North Texas in 2018 and received his PhD in biomedical engineering as a CTSI TL1 Fellowship recipient in 2023, investigating the link between traumatic brain injury and the development of neurodegenerative diseases. Dr. Rogers developed a novel in vitro of trauma (Rogers and Gross, 2019), which allows for the simultaneous electrophysiological and morphological monitoring of neuronal networks exposed to high-g forces in real-time. He is combining this exciting new methodology with Dr. Shi’s well-established in vivo models to explore the underlying mechanisms of primary and secondary injuries and their relationship to neurodegeneration (i.e. Alzheimer’s disease).

Jennifer joined CPR in March 2020 as a Research Associate. She holds a Bachelor of Science in microbiology from Indiana University. Jennifer worked as a high school biology teacher, and moved on to work for a biotech company before coming to Purdue. She has spent the last 20 years at Purdue in various research labs, primarily with a molecular biology focus. She is helping to manage the research aspect of the group including regulatory documentation, ordering, and scheduling. Currently, Jennifer’s research involvement is focused on the initiation of cortical neuronal cultures that are used for various data collection experiments. Favorite TV shows: Santa Clarita Diet, Squid Game, Wednesday

Christina joined CPR in January 2022 as the Administrative Assistant. She graduated with a BA in English and minor in Communication from Purdue University in 2019, and worked as a library clerk for two years before returning to Purdue to join CPR. She maintains the website, writes the newsletter, develops promotional and marketing material for the Center, and coordinates communication efforts. Outside of work, Christina writes as a hobby and enjoys keeping up with the latest shark research.

Anna began her PhD program in biomedical engineering at the Center for Paralysis Research in August 2020. She studied physics and applied mathematics before completing her bachelor’s degree with honors at Furman University. Anna’s current research interest lies in taking a quantitative approach to understand the mechanisms of neurodegenerative disease, particularly multiple sclerosis. Fun facts: has a twin brother, traveled internationally playing viola, came face to face with a shark once, and danced in a parade at Disney World.

Brock received his Bachelor of Science in physics from the University of North Texas in 2019. Brock currently works on using laser ablation to investigate acrolein generated by cortical neurons in the event of very targeted trauma. Brock came to CPR to have the opportunity to put his knowledge of math and physics to work helping people in real and tangible ways. Favorite hobbies: cooking and finding cool vases.

Martina graduated from University of Milan Medical School (Italy) in 2012 and finished her training in neurosurgery in Switzerland in 2019, where then she worked as a consultant. She is a member of the Swiss Neurosurgery Society and International Society of Intraoperative Neurophysiology. She officially joined the Shi lab in August 2022 as a PhD student in interdisciplinary biomedical sciences (IBSc). Her current research interests are the investigation of potential biomarkers and targeted therapy to prevent the development of epilepsy after brain trauma, and electrostimulation to induce repair of nerve fibers after spinal cord injury.

Brianna is a PhD student in Biomedical Engineering. She also received her BS in Biomedical Engineering at Purdue University. She studies brain hemodynamics and CSF flow and their roles in the progression of injury and disease in humans and animal models. Her research focuses on multimodal imaging, including fMRI, functional near-infrared spectroscopy, and EEG.

Nikita graduated with her Bachelor's and Master of Engineering degrees in biomedical engineering from Cornell University. Her previous research interests include tissue engineering and using microfluidic devices. Nikita started working toward her Ph.D. in biomedical engineering in Dr. Riyi Shi's Lab in August 2022, and her current interests include studying blood-brain barrier damage after traumatic brain injury and neurodegeneration. In her free time, she likes to play piano and watch Gilmore Girls.

Jhon received a Bachelor’s of Veterinary Medicine and finished his MS in Pharmacology at the National University of Colombia. During his time as a graduate student, Jhon’s research focused on the neurotoxic activity and neutralization of coral snake venom. He joined the Center for Paralysis Research in 2022 and is currently working towards his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering in Dr. Riyi Shi’s lab. Jhon plans to continue working on neurotoxicity as well as neurodegenerative diseases, traumatic brain injury, and neuropharmacology.

Shatha earned her PharmD (Doctor of Pharmacy) degree from Massachusetts College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences University in Boston. She joined the Center for Paralysis Research in 2021 and is currently working towards her PhD in interdisciplinary biomedical sciences (IBSc) in Dr. Riyi Shi’s lab. Shatha’s research interests include neurodegenerative diseases, traumatic brain injury, nanobiotechnology and neuropharmacology. Favorite books: Harry Potter franchise Favorite movie: Interstellar Favorite TV shows: House, This is Us.

Rachel received her BA in neuroscience, with a minor in biology, from Washington & Jefferson College in 2019. In 2021, Rachel received her MS in neuroscience: systems, behavior and plasticity from Temple University. During her time as an undergraduate and graduate student, Rachel’s research focused on neurodegenerative mechanisms and behavioral outcomes as a consequence of mechanical injury, links between the gut-brain axis and dementia, and mapping motor pathways. As a PhD student in CPR, Rachel plans to continue working on spinal cord injury repair. Favorite movies: Rudy, Happy Gilmore Favorite food: Pizza.

Siyuan officially joined the Shi lab in August of 2020 as a PhD student through the Purdue Interdisciplinary Life Sciences (PULSe) program. He graduated from Capital Medical University (China), with a major in spine surgery, and finished his residency training as a surgeon in 2018. Currently, Siyuan’s research interest is to develop, refine and evaluate new treatments, diagnostic imaging tools and various therapy interventions for the individuals who suffer from spinal cord injury (SCI). Favorite hobbies: traveling, all kinds of car racing, especially Formula 1, and making car models.

Sunny graduated from University of California, Davis with a bachelor’s degree in neurobiology, physiology, and behavior. After shadowing in the hospitals, Sunny realized that there was a gap in basic medical research and their clinical relevancy/applications. Her main goal was to conduct research that had a potential to be translated in new pharmaceuticals or therapeutics. She started the PULSe Interdisciplinary PhD program in 2019 and currently works on traumatic brain injury (TBI) related studies. Sunny hopes to integrate the unique in vivo and in vitro TBI models to investigate how management of neuroinflammation could help with the disease prophylaxis or prognosis. Favorite hobbies: On weekends, she likes to do equestrian. After practicing western riding for four years in college, she is now learning Dressage, which is quite a challenge. She also enjoys traveling, reading novels, and hanging out with her nerdy friends to talk about science.