Our Summer 2021 Alward Lab photo! This is the first time getting folks together for a photo since the lab began in 2019. Thank you vaccines!
Top, left to right: Jacqueline Bahrami, Mariana Lopez, Villa Matovu, Megan Lean, Lillian Jackson, Alex Ferrer
Bottom, left to right: Mark Mathews, Andrew Hoadley, Beau Alward, Uchenna Inoma
Not present: Richanda Berry, Mariam Dumitrascu, and Kamille Hernandez
Beau Alward, PhD
Principal Investigator of the Social Neuroscience Lab
Beau got his PhD from Johns Hopkins University and was an Arnold O. Beckman Fellow at Stanford University. He is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology and has a joint appointment (by courtesy) in the Department of Biology and Biochemistry. He is interested in how our brains process social information and generate appropriate physiological and behavioral responses. He is a member of the Developmental, Cognitive, and Behavioral Neuroscience (DCBN) Program in the Department of Psychology.
Andrew Hoadley, MA
Research Scientist
Andrew received his BA in Biology from Colgate University and his MA in Biology from Boston University. He is interested in studying the neural basis of social behavior using sophisticated behavioral observations and cutting-edge genetic techniques.
Lillian Jackson, BS
PhD Student, DCBN Program
Lillian received her BS in Neuroscience at the University of Texas at Austin. She is interested in the role that social context plays in altering the neural mechanisms of behavior. Additionally, she is interested in finding distinctions between reproductive and aggressive behaviors that are performed by both sexes. She is a PhD student in DCBN Program.
Mariana Lopez, BS
PhD Student, DCBN Program
Currently Mariana’s interests include investigating aggression in A.burtoni males deficient of functional androgen receptor (AR) genes and how the neural mechanisms associated with aggression differ from the norm. She is a PhD student in DCBN Program.
Kat Munley, PhD
Postdoctoral Fellow
Kat received her BS in Marine Biology and her BA in Creative Writing from the University of Miami, and she recently received her PhD in Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior from Indiana University. Broadly, she is interested in how an organism’s external environment influences its internal state, including neuroendocrine substrates and social behavior. As a postdoctoral fellow in the Alward Lab, she will be investigating how steroid hormones regulate aggressive and reproductive behaviors across different social contexts.
Megan Howard, BS
Lab Technician
Megan received her BS in biology from Abilene Christian University. She is currently working as a lab technician to learn more about neurobiology before beginning a graduate program. She is interested in learning about how neural and hormonal factors interact with behavioral elements like sociability and communication.
Sara Loetzerich, BA
Research Assistant
Sara got her BA in Fine Arts with a specialty in Studio Painting from the University of New Orleans, Postbacc in biology at UH, PhD student in cellular and molecular biology starting fall 2022. Currently Lab Assistant for Mesiel Lab Group and Research Assistant for Alward Lab. She is interested in the molecular and neural basis of development and social behavior.
Undergraduate and High School Research Assistants
Mark Mathews (2019-Present) (2021 SURF Awardee)
Mark is interested in the role that Androgen Receptors (AR) play in spermatogenesis and the development of the testis. He is interested in discovering the underlying mechanisms for the hormonal basis of spermatogenesis and how this affects fertility. Mark is currently an undergraduate student majoring in biology.
Megan Lean (2019-Present) (2021 SURF Awardee)
Megan is interested in the molecular mechanisms that control how organisms respond to their social environment. Her research project includes elucidating the spatial relationship between androgen receptors alpha and beta with GnRH neurons. She is currently a Senior majoring in Psychology.
Jacqueline Bahrami (2021-Present) (2022 PURS Awardee)
Jacqueline received her BS in exercise science with a focus in health professions. Her current research investigates the sex differences between male and female A. burtoni in regards to cellular proliferation and radial glial cells.
Maxximus Ramsaroop (2022-Present)
Maxximus is an undergraduate Biology major at the University of Houston. He is interested in social behavior and how behavioral and morphological cues affect sexual selection and communication. He is currently working to understand how visual cues and coloration affect female preference.
Mariam Diramatscu (2021-Present)
Kamille Hernandez (2020-Present) (Summers only; Glenda Dawson High School)
Villa Matovu (2021-Present)
Lab Alumni
Richanda Berry (Now: UT San Antonio Clinical and Mental Health Counseling Masters Program)
Uchenna Inoma (Now: Lonza Bioscience)
Humayd Mirza (Now: Kosten Addiction Lab at UH)
Rohail Siddiqi (Now: Kosten Addiction Lab at UH)
Alward Social Neuroscience Lab 