Meet Our Team!
Principal Investigator: Anthony J. Covarrubias
Twitter: @ACovarrubiasphD
Anthony grew up in Los Angeles and got his undergraduate degree in biochemistry from UCLA. After grad school in Boston and a postdoc in the Bay Area, Anthony is glad to be back in Los Angeles. Outside the lab, Anthony enjoys exploring the city, visiting breweries, and cheering for the Dodgers!
Graduate Student Trainees
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Grasiela Torres, B.S.
Ph.D. Candidate
Grasiela was born and raised in Lawrence, MA and received her B.S. in Biology with a concentration in Health Sciences from Emmanuel College. Grasiela moved across the country to pursue her PhD in Molecular Biology at UCLA where she hopes to develop genetic tools to study cellular senescence. Outside of the lab, Grasiela enjoys spending time at the beach, trying new foods, and listening to good music!
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Ivan Salladay-Perez, M.S.
Ph.D. Candidate
Ivan is a Southern California native from Long Beach, CA. He attended Long Beach City College and competed in intercollegiate sports (Track and Field), then transferred to CSU-Long Beach to complete his bachelor’s in general biology with research experience in molecular parasitology. After his bachelor’s, he pursued a master's degree in biology and worked in Dr. Nathan Lanning's lab to complete his master’s thesis on bioenergetic metabolism in cancer. Now, he is a doctoral student at UCLA-MBI in the CDB (Cell and Developmental Biology) home area. His research interests include employing computational and high throughput approaches to understand global deregulated processes in an aged immune system. On his days off, Ivan enjoys spending time with his family, trying new foods, and playing basketball at the park.
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Itzetl Avila
Ph.D. Student
Itzetl is originally from Jalisco, Mexico but grew up in the San Fernando Valley, CA. She attended Los Angeles Valley College before transferring to UCLA where she received her B.S. in Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology. Now she is a doctoral student in the department of Molecular, Cellular, & Integrative Physiology at UCLA. She is interested in developing in vivo mouse models to investigate the effects of cellular senescence on aging and age-related diseases. In her spare time, Itzetl enjoys reading, eating, and spending time with her family.
Undergraduate Student Trainees
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Mathew Park
Rising Second Year
Matthew is from Northridge, CA and is an undergraduate majoring in Biology at UCLA. After graduation, Matthew plans to pursue graduate studies in either a doctoral or medical degree program. Outside the lab, Matthew works as an Emergency Room Technician, spoils his dog Yoshi, and is most likely catching up on sleep.
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Isabella Amaya Rojas
Rising Third Year
Isabella is from Hawaiian Gardens, CA, and is an undergraduate majoring in Neuroscience with a minor in Gerontology. After graduation, she plans to obtain her Master’s in Nursing. Her ultimate goal is to become an Adult Gerontology Nurse Practitioner. Outside the lab, Isabella works as a Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA) for the Ronald Reagan and Santa Monica UCLA Medical Centers. Her hobbies include trying new coffee shops, baking, and reading horror books.
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Cristian Ponce
Rising Third Year
Cristian is from Missouri majoring in Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics and minoring in Biomedical Research. His current research focuses on a mitochondrial DNA synthesizing enzyme and how its activity can influence the release of canonical inflammatory markers shown to progress age-related diseases. Outside of research, Cristian enjoys spending time with family, golfing, trying new restaurants, and visiting flea markets.
Former Lab Members
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Anika Dhingra, B.S.
Undergraduate Trainee, SRA II & Lab Manager
Current UCSF Medical Student
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Albert Macias, B.S.
Undergraduate Trainee
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Lizeth Estrada, B.S.
SRA II & Lab Manager
Current UCSF Medical Student
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Elizabeth Guli, B.S.
Undergraduate Trainee
Current research assistant at Alector Therapeutics