Lab Members — Silverman Lab

Jill Silverman, PhD (Professor; PI)

The major goal of the lab’s research is to apply my 15+ years of training and experience with rodent models to implement translational medicine for helping kids and adults with neurodevelopmental disorders. Easy peasy, right?

I have always used model systems. I believe in them wholeheartedly. Every treatment that has ever come to fruition used animal models in its research.

My predoctoral research was in Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience at the University of Maryland, Maryland Psychiatric Research Center. In 2007, I did my postdoctoral training in pharmacology in mouse models of autism within the Crawley group at the NIMH. In 2012, I was recruited with a faculty appointment, to the University of California Davis and MIND Institute. My focus since then has been to work exclusively on rare disease with known genetic causes, such as Fragile X syndrome, 22q13 deletion (Phelan-McDermid), Angelman, Prader-Willi, and Duplication 15q syndromes. I also study how these rare diseases can inform broader disorders such as autism, epilepsy, and other intellectual disability syndromes.

Recently, we expanded our breadth of in vivo phenotypes to include comprehensive analysis of behavioral seizures, sleep patterns, and electroencephalographic hyperexcitability. I have been a member of the Society for Neuroscience since 2002, the International Society for Autism Research since 2008, and was recently elected President of the International Behavioral Neuroscience Society.

I am routinely invited to review grant applications for the New Jersey Governor’s Council on Autism Research, Autism Science Foundation, and National Institutes of Health.

I love brain science! I love my job! I love these rare disease families! I love watching young scientists grow up in my lab and being a proud momma bear! I love my pitbull rescue dogs! I love handstands!

Email: jsilverman@ucdavis.edu

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Sarah L. Olguin, MS, PhD (Post doctoral Hartwell Fellow)

Sarah received her PhD in biomedical sciences at the University of New Mexico. There her research utilized EEG paired with touchscreen technology to characterize attention and reward learning in a prenatal alcohol exposure model. Now at UC Davis, she plans to integrate her experience with EEG to study seizures, circadian cycle, and associated brain activity with various neurodevelopment disorders. Sarah is most excited to be a part of a translational research lab with the hope of making a positive impact on patients’ lives. Outside of the lab, Sarah likes to camp, hang at the pool, and spend time with family.
email: SLOlguin@ucdavis.edu

**Anna Y. Yotova, MSc, PhD (Postdoctoral Scholar)**

Annie is a Neuroscientist experienced in behavioral, molecular, and morphological tools to study neuropsychiatric disorders. Her PhD projects at the Translational Psychiatry, University Hospital Frankfurt, Germany focused on prenatal environmental and genetic risk factors’ effects on brain and behavior. At UC Davis, Annie’s research interests encompass multiple rare, X-linked, and synaptic gene-associated neurodevelopmental disorders - to hopefully get us closer to understanding and better treating those affected. She is also involved in multiple scientific societies, including as the elected Trainee Council Representative and on committees for IBNS, and the ALBA Network. Apart from volunteering, Annie enjoys reading, cooking, dancing, art, and on rare but integral occasions – the beach.
email: AYotova@ucdavis.edu

Emma Monsen
(Junior Specialist)

Emma graduated from UC Davis with a BS in Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior before joining the Silverman Lab as a Junior Specialist. She is passionate about utilizing both motor control and electrophysiological techniques to help those with developmental disorders. In her free time, Emma enjoys designing tattoos, hiking, planting trees, and stargazing.
Email: ermonsen@ucdavis.edu

Jala Rice (Junior Specialist):

Jala received her BS in Cell/Cellular and Molecular Biology from California State University-Los Angeles in the spring of 2023. She joined the Silverman lab in February of 2024 as a Junior Specialist and has an interest in decoding the importance of protein location (nuclear vs cytosol) and behavior in our mouse model of Dup15q syndrome. In her free time Jala enjoys playing volleyball.

email: jccrice@ucdavis.edu