Affiliation: University of Massachusetts, Chan Medical School, Department of Neurobiology, Brudnick Neuropsychiatric Research Institute

Dr. Violeta Durán Laforet works as a postdoctoral associate at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. She graduated from Universidad Complutense de Madrid in 2016 with a degree in Pharmacy. After graduating, she joined the Neurovascular Research Unit as a PhD candidate under Dr. Ignacio Lizasoain and Dr. María Ángeles Moro. During her PhD studies, her research focused on the role of neutrophils in the physiopathology of stroke, studying the heterogeneity of the neutrophil population that infiltrates the brain after stroke. Also, she explored the role of the receptor TLR4 on neutrophil polarization and infiltration after ischemia. In 2019 and 2020, she was a visiting scientist at the Neuroprotection Research Lab, Massachusetts General Hospital, at Harvard Medical School. Under the supervision of Harvard professor Dr. Eng Lo, she studied the implication of neutrophils on the pathophysiology of stroke and its relationship with the lymphatic nodules and the role of parenchymal astrocytes in neurogenesis after stroke. She received her PhD in December 2020 and joined Dr. Schafer’s lab as a Postdoctoral Associate, where she continues to investigate the role of immune cells in the context of brain disease. Currently, her research focuses on the role of senescent microglia in diverse neurodegenerative pathologies.