Ph.D. Student

B.A. Neuroscience, Pomona College

jsimanau@ucsc.edu

While I was born and raised in Kaunas, Lithuania, at the age of 16, I was awarded the Davis International Scholarship and invited to join a boarding school - The Taft School in Connecticut. This further led me to my undergraduate studies at Pomona College in Claremont, CA, where I majored in Neuroscience. My thirst for adventure led me to study abroad (x2) in Australia at The University of Melbourne, where I immersed myself in a new culture while continuing to explore the intricacies of sensory respiratory neuroscience at The Mazzone Lab. Throughout my undergraduate years, I conducted research in various labs, from unraveling the mysteries of Behavioral Neuroscience to experimenting with chemical compounds and pharmacological pathways of Alzheimer's Disease.

After tossing my graduation cap, I traded the classroom for the vibrant Bay Area scene, diving into the dynamic research world at Stanford University. There, I delved into cutting-edge research in Neurodegenerative diseases at the Longo Lab and Cancer therapeutics at the Crabtree Lab.

Now, as a proud Banana Slug at UC Santa Cruz's Boyd Lab, I'm diving even deeper into the realm of Molecular, Cell, and Developmental Biology, focusing on respiratory viral infections.

Beyond the lab, you'll find me chasing waves along the coastline, whipping up culinary creations in the kitchen, tackling the slopes as I navigate the thrilling world of snowboarding, and running around on the sandy Santa Cruz beaches with my wonderful pup - Coco.