Katherine Hankes

Katherine Hankes is a student at the University of Michigan studying to obtain her Bachelor of Science in neuroscience. She hopes to attend medical school and undergo an additional research fellowship to become a physician-scientist in neuroscience. Uncovering the chemical causes of behavior, and the complex ways in which humans function and dysfunction, has always been her greatest interest and joy. In her career, she plans to operate on her fundamental belief that nobody should have to lose agency over their own mind. Previously, Katherine has worked to investigate genetic risk factors underlying multiple sclerosis (MS), as well as research a new endogenous nanodisk drug delivery system to induce bystander immune suppression in translational mouse models of MS. As a SURFiN fellow, Katherine looks forward to examining how pathological changes in the brain may alter neural and cognitive function, and ultimately confer resilience to cognitive decline. She is thrilled to work toward pushing the boundaries of scientific understanding as it relates to Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of cognitive decline.

Mentor: Surjeet Singh (Kaczorowski Lab)