Lab Members

Louis R. Lapierre, Ph.D.

Louis obtained a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Dalhousie University in 2006. His research interests in metabolism and aging led him to pursue postdoctoral studies in San Diego at the Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute. He started his independent laboratory at Brown University in 2015. He joined the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Université de Moncton in 2022.

Laura Harrison

Laura recently obtained a B.Sc. in Neuroscience from Dalhousie University in 2025. Her previous research experience in developmental biology led her to the Lapierre lab where she is excited to explore the relationship between autophagy regulation, aging, and neurodegenerative disease.

Adia Ouellette

Adia moved back to her hometown of Moncton New-Brunswick after pursuing a bachelor’s degree in microbiology and a master’s in nutrition at Université Laval. Her passion for molecular biology and lab work led her to the Lapierre lab, where she aims to contribute to projects while cultivating a collaborative learning environment.

Duc Anh Trinh

Duc Anh enjoyed studying in various countries including Vietnam, S. Korea, Japan and Canada and completed his Ph.D. in the Hisanori lab (Tohoku U.) where he developed skills and knowledge in molecular and cell biology. Duc Anh joined the Lapierre Lab in July 2024 eager to explore aging-cancer balance in the context of autophagy regulation.

Cristina Bolonyi

Cristina is currently in her 4th year at U. de Moncton, pursuing a B.Sc. in Biochemistry and Microbiology. She joined the Lapierre lab in May 2025 to pursue health and longevity research. She aims to cultivate both her scientific knowledge and interpersonal skills, laying a strong foundation for future graduate studies. 

Marie-Hélène Lebel

Marie-Hélène obtained a Diploma in Health Sciences and is entering her 4th year of a B.Sc. in Biochemistry at U. de Moncton. She is passionate about understanding the molecular basis of disease. With aspirations to pursue medical practice and clinical research, she is eager to gain experience in laboratory research.

Étienne Saint-Aubin

Étienne is a medical student at the Centre de formation médicale du Nouveau-Brunswick, a satellite campus from Université de Sherbrooke. He is originally from Dieppe in New Brunswick, and he completed his Diploma in health sciences from Université de Moncton in 2020. 

Sungyoun  (Sunny) Kim

Originally from South Korea, Sunny obtained a Diploma in Health Sciences and a B.Sc. in Biochemistry with a minor in Biology from the Université de Moncton in 2024. She has a strong interest in clinical research particularly in understanding disease mechanisms and advancing patient treatment options. Sunny aspires to pursue a career in medicine and is eager to delve into the study of autophagy and metabolism in aging.

Anna Nicolaizeau

Anna is a French student in her third year of a Licence in biochemistry, molecular biology and cell biology at University of Poitiers. As an exchange student at University of Moncton, she joined Lapierre’s team to improve her skills on the bench and her knowledges about responses to stress in cancer cells. She is currently pursuing graduate school at La Sarbonne University.

Eva Abou-Samra

Eva is entering her fourth year at Dalhousie University pursuing a B. Sc in Medical Sciences, where she participated in cardiovascular research throughout her undergrad. She is pursuing a career in medicine and wants to combine practice with translational research. Eva is excited to join the Lapierre lab for the summer with the support of the IWK Jeremy Ingham Studentship and BHCRI.

Ève Belliveau

Ève recently completed her first year at Université de Moncton in the D.S.S. program. She is passionate about learning biology and is hoping to pursue studies in the health sciences. She joined the Lapierre Lab in May 2024 and is looking forward to participating in research on aging.

Skyla Dorcas

Skyla is currently working towards her honours B.Sc. from McGill University, majoring in bio-organic chemistry. She is interested in the chemical mechanisms of biological processes and their application to drug design. She joined the Lapierre Lab in May 2024 hoping to explore biochemistry research for her future graduate studies plans.

Sophie Landry

Sophie recently completed my B. Sc. with a major in biology at Université Sainte-Anne, where she participated in ecology research throughout her undergrad. Going forward, her goal is to pursue a career in the medical field combining medical practice and research. In terms of research, she has a particular interest in oncology and is excited to pursue research in the Lapierre lab!

Isabelle Belliveau

Isabelle joined the Lapierre lab in September 2023. She is currently working towards her B. Sc. with a major in biochemistry and a minor in biology. She is excited to explore research in the different aging processes to prepare her for eventual graduate studies.

Savannah Doucet

Savannah is originally from Bathurst, New-Brunswick. She has obtained her diploma in health sciences in 2022 and is currently working towards her bachelors in biochemistry. She joined the Lapierre Lab in May 2023 to further her knowledge of the aging research field as she plans to do graduate studies in the future.

Sandrine Daigle 

Sandrine joined the Lapierre Lab in September 2022 after completing a diploma in health sciences in Moncton. She has developed an interest in immunology and she recently completed a B. Sc. in biochemistry.  Sandrine is currently pursuing a Pharmacy Degree at Dalhousie University. 

Joël Girouard

Joël joined the Lapierre lab in the fall of 2022. He initially completed a preparatory degree in health sciences at the Université de Moncton and has recently completed a B.Sc. with a major in biochemistry and a minor in biology. In addition, he is particularly interested in medical fields such as oncology and radiology. He is currently pursuing a Medical Law degree at Université de Moncton.

Aziliz Duverger 

As part of the CO-OP program in biochemistry at the Université de Moncton, Aziliz began working at the Lapierre Lab in September 2022. Originally from France, her research interest are aging and cancer. She is also the proud owner of a mare named Sweet Dreams.

Anita Kumar, Ph.D. 

Anita obtained a doctoral degree from the National Institute for Research in Reproductive Health in Mumbai in 2017.  She joined the Lapierre laboratory in 2018 as a Postdoctoral Researcher.  In 2023, she joined the staff team at JoVE.

Shiquan Wong, Ph.D.

Born and raised in Singapore, Shiquan moved to the UK for her undergraduate and doctoral studies and graduated as Dr. Wong from the University of Liverpool in 2017. Shiquan is passionate about understanding the pathomechanisms of neurodegenerative diseases. From Shiquan's bench to the clinic, her goal is to pave the way to successful therapies for these conditions and has been worming her way towards this since joining the Lapierre lab in 2018. In 2023, she joined Atalanta Therapeutics.

Avery McNamara

Avery joined the Lapierre Lab in the Fall of 2021 from URI. He is providing technical support for worm, cell and mice research and he is leading drug discovery objectives of our research program. 

Saadhya Bahudodda

Saadhya is from Farmington, CT, and joined the Lapierre Lab in the Fall of 2021. She plans on concentrating in Neuroscience; her research interests lie mainly in neurodegenerative disease. She hopes to go into the medical field after college. 

Celeste Ng

Celeste is from Miami, Florida and joined the Lapierre Lab in Spring 2019. She is a pre-medical student and is hoping to major in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology. Celeste is currently at Tufts pursuing a Medical Degree.

Diego Rodriguez

Diego joined the lab in the Spring of 2020. He grew up in the Bronx, New York and is currently planning on concentrating in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at Brown. He has interests in continuing research after Brown in the biomedical sciences. Diego is currently pursuing graduate school at UC Berkeley. 

Alexander Alexandrov

Alexander joined the Lapierre Lab in the Fall of 2021, bringing experience from past research at Weill Cornell. From Westchester, New York, he is originally from Sofia, Bulgaria. He's concentrating in biomedical engineering on a pre med track. An avid skier, car enthusiast, and reader, his weekends are spent on the slopes, at car shows, or sitting outdoors with a classic in hand.

Rachel Tam

Rachel joined the lab in the Spring of 2021 and is from Toronto, Canada. She is concentrating in biology and gender and sexuality studies at Brown. In her free time she enjoys taking care of her houseplants.

Joslyn Mills, Ph.D.

Originally from Michigan, Joslyn received her doctoral degree in Cellular and Molecular Physiology from Tufts University in Boston, MA.  She joined the Lapierre lab as a Postdoctoral Researcher in the summer of 2018 and is interested in organelle dynamics in aging.  Joslyn joined the faculty at Wheaton College in 2021.

Barbara Szewczyk, Ph.D.

Originally from Poland, Barbara obtained her doctoral degree from TU Dresden, Germany, where she investigated neurodegenerative processes in neurons generated from human induced pluripotent stem cells. She joined the Lapierre lab in 2021 as a visiting scholar to learn more about worm as a tool to study neurodegeneration and aging.

Erin McConnell

Erin joined our laboratory in the summer of 2017 to learn about worm genetics and the biology of aging. The following summers, she supported projects on autophagy and aging. She started college at University of Vermont in September 2019.

Catherine Ryan

Catherine joined the Lapierre laboratory in Spring 2018. She trained in the Jasper laboratory at the Buck Institute and is currently pursuing studies in neurodegenerative disease models.

Wesley Parker

Wesley joined the lab in the Spring of 2019. He hails from the state of Maine and is pursuing a concentration in cellular and molecular biology at Brown. He received an UTRA fellowship in 2019 to pursue studies on lipid droplets. Outside of classes and research, he enjoys writing and playing music and soccer with friends.  Wesley is currently pursuing graduate school at Harvard.

Rishi Patel

Rishi is an aspiring student in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology who joined the Lapierre Laboratory in Spring 2019. He is originally from India and has experienced working in pharmaceutical companies. He hopes to be a part of the biotechnology and pharmaceutical industries in the near future. Rishi is currently CEO of Vitely.

Tara Thakurta 

Originally from Palo Alto, California, Tara joined the Lapierre laboratory in Fall 2017 after training at Genentech. She obtained an Sc.B. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and a Senior Biology Prize in Spring 2020. Tara recently started graduate studies at MIT. 

Tuong Tran

Originally from Vietnam, Tuong joined Lapierre laboratory in the Fall of 2018. She is a pre-medical student and is hoping to double concentrate in Biochemistry and East Asian Studies at Brown University. In her free time, Tuong loves to paint and play sports with her friends.

Joshua Leitao

Josh graduated with a Master's degree in Molecular Microbiology and Immunology from Johns Hopkins Bloomberg  School of Public Health in Baltimore in 2017. He joined the Lapierre laboratory in 2018 as a Research Assistant until Summer of 2019. He then pursued Pharmacy School at MCPHS in Worcester, MA. He is currently a pharmacist in New Hampshire.

Victoria St. Amand 

Originally from Deer Isle, Maine, Victoria is graduate student in the Dept. of Molecular Biology, Cell Biology and Biochemistry at Brown. She joined the Lapierre lab in Fall 2018 as a rotation student and is currently pursuing her Ph.D. in the Reenan laboratory at Brown.

Karena Nguyen

Karena Nguyen graduated from Brown in 2019 with a degree in Biology on the Immunobiology track. She joined the Lapierre lab in Fall 2016. Over the summer, she will continue working with C. elegans at San Jose State University. Karena’s interests include environmentalism, basketball, and donut shops.

Sarah Marion

Sarah is an undergraduate from Washington D.C., who joined the team after conducting C. elegans research at NYU School of Medicine in Summer 2017. In her free time, Sarah loves to play lacrosse and watch Game of Thrones. She is currently a medical student at the University of Virginia School of Medicine. 

Melissa Silvestrini, Ph.D.

Originally from Northern California, Melissa completed her doctoral studies at the The Graduate Center, City University of New York in 2016. She studied the role of autophagy and lipid metabolism during development in C. elegans. She was a Postdoctoral Researcher in the Lapierre lab from 2016-2018. She was a Visiting Assistant Professor at Providence College from 2018-2022 and is currently a scientist at Bio-Rad.

Joseph Johnson

Originally from San Luis Obispo County, California, Joe obtained a Sc.B. in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in Spring 2018. He joined the Lapierre Lab in Fall 2015, obtained an UTRA fellowship in 2016, and received the Maria L. Caleel Memorial Award in 2018 for his academic excellence and research achievements. After graduating, Joe completed an orthopedic trauma research fellowship at NYU Langone Orthopedic Hospital. He is currently a medical student at Stanford University School of Medicine.