Lance Kriegsfeld

Lance Kriegsfeld received his PhD from the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences at The Johns Hopkins University in 1999 working with Dr. Randy Nelson examining the neural mechanisms underlying the seasonal control of reproduction. Lance continued his training as a postdoctoral fellow at Columbia University, working with Dr. Rae Silver to determine the cellular and network mechanisms by which circadian rhythms are generated in the brain clock in the suprachiasmatic nucleus. In 2005, Lance started his lab at UC Berkeley, where his lab focuses on the importance of circadian timing and sleep in health and disease prevention.

Carter Bower

Carter was born and grew up in the valley of Arizona. He received his B.S. in both Psychology and Neuroscience from Arizona State University. In 2023, he joined the Kriegsfeld Lab at the University of California, Berkeley, as a graduate student in the Behavior and Systems Neuroscience area of the Psychology department. He investigates the psychological effects of manipulating the strength of circadian rhythms. After growing up in Arizona, he love watching the fog roll in and out of the bay area every day.

Alexandra Serna Godoy

Alexandra is originally from Mexico. She earned her B.S. in Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior and B.A. in Psychology, with a minor in Chicanx Studies, from the University of California, Davis, in 2024. As an undergraduate, she worked with Dr. Brian Trainor investigating the effects of social stress on social behaviors and gene expression within oxytocin neurons using nuclei isolation techniques in mice. She is currently a third-year PhD student in the Psychology program with a focus on Behavioral and Systems Neuroscience. Her research examines the relationship between circadian rhythms and bipolar disorder in both mice models and humans, with an emphasis on how circadian disruption and entrainment affect bipolar-related symptoms.

Chayarndorn "Jeff" Phumsatitpong

Chayarndorn (Jeff) Phumsatitpong earned his B.S. in Biology from Chulalongkorn University in Thailand. In 2014, he joined the Molecular and Integrative Physiology Ph.D. program at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. During his doctoral studies in Dr. Sue Moenter’s lab, Jeff investigated the effects of stress on reproductive neurocircuits in female mice using electrophysiological approaches. After receiving his Ph.D. in 2020, he began a postdoctoral fellowship with Dr. Lance Kriegsfeld, focusing on how circadian rhythms and stress regulate female reproductive function.

Dhanya Paul

Dhanya graduated from Santa Clara University, where she trained with Dr. Kirsten Read to investigate how predictable language in storybooks impacts early language learning. While studying cognition, she became interested in the biological mechanisms that underlie learning and behavior. Seeing how these mechanisms can give rise to complex behaviors sparked her interest in studying mechanistic approaches to disease. She then joined the You Lab at Washington University, where she worked on targeting RNA surveillance mechanisms in cell-based disease models. She now looks forward to gaining insight into genetic models of bipolar disorder in the Kriegsfeld Lab. Outside of the lab, she enjoys hiking, arts and crafts, and trying new recipes.

Liam Gaard

Liam earned his B.A. in psychology from the University of California, Davis, where he worked on projects examining the nature of human inference and animal models of mental health. He graduated with highest honors for his undergraduate thesis on the effects of CRISPR-Cas9 oxytocin receptor knockdown on anxiety behavior in California mice and received a citation for outstanding performance from the Department of Psychology. Prior to joining the Kriegsfeld Lab, Liam worked as a certified applied behavioral analysis therapist. In his free time, he enjoys collaborative storytelling, bouldering, and spending time with his rescue cat.

• Caleb Cohen — 2025
• Nellie Gkatzimas — 2026
• Caronina Langaro — 2025
• Lauryn Anh Hong — 2025
• Suleet Correa Lopez — 2025
• Monique Khouw — 2026
• Zoe Arkin — 2025
• Yune Lee — 2024
• Victoria Pan — 2024
• Eleanor Chen — 2025
• Ashley Park — 2025
• Katara Chang — 2026
• Isabella Demiroska — 2026

Graduate Student Alumni

• Alex Mason — 2005–2010 Postdoctoral Fellow with Emile Rissman, Department of Biological Sciences, North Carolina State University
• Wilbur Williams — 2006–2011 Senior Medical Science Liaison, Alkermes
• Erin Gibson — 2006–2010 Assistant Professor, Stanford University
• David Piekarski — 2010–2014 Research Associate, Lorentz Bio
• Kimberly Russo — 2011–2016 Educator, Esparto High School
• Kimberly Jennings — 2011–2017 Research Development Officer, UT Austin
• Neta Gotlieb — 2015–2021 Lead Clinical Research Scientist, Oura Inc.
• Emilio Soto-Soto — 2015–2021 Future of Higher Education Postdoctoral Fellow, UC Berkeley
• Azure Grant — 2019–2022 Head of Research, People Science
• Savannah Bever — 2018–2022 Research Associate, Conception, Inc.
• Jacob Moeller — 2018–2024 Postdoctoral Fellow with Almudena Veiga-Lopez, University of Illinois, Chicago

Postdoctoral Alumni

• Sheng Zhao — 2007–2012 Professor, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Southeast University Medical School, Nanjing, China
• Rebecca Calisi-Rodriguez — 2013–2014 Associate Professor, Department of Biology, University of California, Davis
• Lonnele Ball — 2010–2015 Director, Bay Area Institute for Preventative Medicine
• Benjamin Smarr — 2013–2019 Assistant Professor, University of California, San Diego
• Alaina Thomas — 2018–2019 Research Associate, Genentech

Undergraduate Student Alumni

• Lauren Clawson — 2022-2024
• Nathan Jun Bae — 2023-2025
• Kasturi Sinha — 2024-2025
• Megan Anctil — 2024-2025
• Haruka Kwan — 2025-2025
• Lianna Dizon Soriano — 2025-2026
• Alia Choi — 2024-2026
• Christie Bao — 2022-2024
• Brynn Norby — 2022-2023