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Dr Kasey Belanger-Mayer
Name:
Dr Kasey Belanger-Mayer
Job title:
Postdoctoral Researcher
Place of work / study:
Albany Medical College
Area of Research:
Neuroscience – Genetic factors of Alzheimer’s Disease
How is your work funded?
I am currently working as a postdoc under a multiple PI UO1 grant funded by The national institute of aging (NIA)
Tell us a little about yourself:
I am an Army brat who moved around different states and countries every 2 years and love continuing to learn about new cultures, especially how to cook different cuisine! I received my PhD in Physiology from The Medical College of Georgia where I studied sex differences in the immune cell profile in hypertensive rats. I decided to switch fields after graduation, back to my first passion of neuroscience. I started a new postdoc position in January 2022 at Albany Medical College investigating the functional impact of Alzheimer’s Disease risk genes on neuro-vascular interactions.
Tell us a fun fact about yourself:
I foster medical case dogs to nurse them back to health and find them amazing adoptive families. Over the last 4 years, I have found 62 dogs’ homes (and have only kept 3 😊)!
Why did you choose to work in dementia?
I have always been intrigued by how complex the brain is. I quickly realized that I could bring a new perspective to the field with my experience in sex differences, immune cell profiles, and hypertension. I just loved how all-inclusive and varietal this field was and how many different avenues could be explored through a vast range of techniques all under one disease.
What single piece of advice would you give to an early career researcher?
Network and collaborate outside your lab / department / field! Do not get stuck in a box where you only read about things or attend seminars related to your project. The best project ideas I have come up have been after talking with professionals in different fields who have offered intriguing explanation or asked questions that I hadn’t thought of that pushed my project to novel places I never imagined.
What book are you reading right now? Would you recommend it?
Honestly, I am expecting my first child in December, so am reading the Mayo Clinic Guild to a Healthy Pregnancy. Its great if you are planning a family or are currently expecting though!
Other than that, I just finished Welcome to Dunder Mifflin: The Ultimate Oral History of the Office. If you love that show as much as me, it’s a great short read!
