Dr. Sharmila Venugopal, November 2025 Snapshot

Published November 20, 2025

Dr. Sharmila Venugopal, an Assistant Professor in the Chemistry and Biochemistry Department, and her students in THINK (The Innovation, Neuroscience, and Knowledge) Lab focus on Neuroscience at the intersection of biochemistry, biology, mathematics, physics, data science and engineering.

The human brain is an extraordinarily complex system guiding our thoughts, memories, and movements. When brain cells called neurons die, it can lead to devastating symptoms such as memory loss, impaired movement, or even paralysis. Diseases like Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and ALS begin damaging neurons long before symptoms appear, making early detection crucial.

Darren in the lab
Biochemistry graduate student Darren Ching working at the electrophysiology rig.
Amy and My-Ahn in the lab
Amy Trinh and My-Ahn dissect an earthworm.
Vanessa and Dr. Venuogopal at a computer
Mahtab Z Yazdi and Dr. Venugopal working on a computational model to explain brain-immune interactions.

THINK Lab focuses on uncovering the earliest molecular and cellular events that trigger and sustain neuronal death. Their goal is to identify early biomarkers and drug targets that could help prevent or slow the progression of these debilitating brain disorders.

A major project is focusing on identifying early biomarkers for Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), a terminal neurodegenerative disease. By employing mouse models of human ALS and cutting-edge neuroscience techniques, undergraduate and graduate researchers in THINK LAB are studying the neuroscience of brain disorders. Join THINK LAB to meet the brain at the frontier of STEM research!

Learn more about Dr. Venugopal's lab and research.

Sharmila Venugopal and student researchers
The Venugopal Lab: front row, left to right: My-Anh, Vanessa Walasek, Amy Trinh; middle row: Jennifer Ramirez, Dr. Sharmila Venugopal, Darren Ching; back row: Mahtab Yazdi, Matilda Engelson, Giselle Dulay.