Mason Martin
Entered: Neuroscience Graduate Program NGP 2024
Mentor: Lin Tian, Ph.D.
Thesis Topic: TBD
B.S. Biomedical Sciences/Neuroscience, University of Central Florida, Orlando
"I am researching the development and application of genetically encoded glutamate sensors in the labs of Dr. Lin Tian and Dr. Randy Blakely. In the Tian lab, I am using techniques in molecular and cellular biology to optimize a glutamate sensor for in vivo applications. I aim to use this sensor in the Blakely lab to investigate glutamate dynamics between neurons and astrocytes in mice, and how clearance is disrupted in a diseased state.
I majored in Biomedical Sciences at the University of Central Florida, where I studied oxidative stress in neural progenitor cells. After graduating from UCF, I joined Dr. Matthew Disney’s lab as a postbaccalaureate fellow at The Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute, where I investigated chemical probing of a structured RNA in the SARS-CoV-2 genome.
I was attracted to FAU because of the breadth of Neuroscience research areas including molecular, behavioral, and computational labs. During my rotation in the Blakely lab, I conducted metabolic assays in c. elegans to explore the interplay between neurons and glia. In the Toll lab, I applied confocal microscopy and mouse behavior analysis to study IL-1 and its role in pain. My rotation in the Tian lab built on my experience in molecular biology to optimize a genetically encoded glutamate sensor."