Tristan Sands, MD, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Neurology
Principal Investigator
BS Louisiana State University, Microbiology
MD, Ph.D, Columbia P&S, Cellular, Molecular and Biomedical Studies
Resident UCSF Med. Center, Child Neurology
Fellow, Columbia University, Epilepsy, Clinical Neurophysiology
My focus on translational research in epilepsy and autism began with my graduate research training and thesis work investigating the role of the Tuberous Sclerosis Complex gene TSC2 during development in the lab of Arnold R. Kriegstein. This focus continued during residency in child neurology at UCSF under the mentorship of M. Roberta Cilio with work that called into question the efficacy of quinidine for KCNT1-related epilepsy of infancy with migrating focal seizures (EIMFS) and in work that demonstrated the clear efficacy of carbamazepine in neonatal epilepsy caused by inherited loss-of-function (LoF) variants in KCNQ2 and KCNQ3.
Divya Soundararajan, MS
Staff Associate Scientist
M.S (Cell, Molecular and Structural Biology), Miami University , Ohio
B.E ( Biomedical Engineering), Anna University, India
After graduation, I worked at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital as a research assistant studying and developing therapies for Pulmonary Fibrosis with mouse models.
I joined the CTRND (then the IGM) in 2021 and started working with Dr. Frankel on testing RNA-based therapies on mouse models for developmental and epileptic encephalopathies. In my spare time, I love reading books, travelling, and capturing my travel experiences through photography.
Gabriel Jimenez, BS
Technician
BS (Animal Behavior) Ursinus College, Collegeville PA
After graduating from Ursinus College in 2022 with a Bachelor of Science in Animal Behavior, my goal in joining the Sands lab was to expand the field of behavior and neurology through animal models. At Ursinus, I completed my first publication in the Ecology and Evolution journal on behavioral niche differences in the eastern red-backed salamander. This study spanned over the course of my 4 years at Ursinus and focused primarily on how ecological niche differences affect behavioral tendencies and the physiology of color polymorphs present in the species. Currently in the Sands lab I assist in the research of neurodevelopmental disorders involving mutations in genes KCNQ2, KCNQ3, CSNk2b, and GRIN2a/d. My work includes the electroclinical and behavioral characterization of these diseases as well as aiding in the development of gene and RNA-based therapy. I hope to further my studies within a related field studying animal behavior and utilize this degree to make significant breakthroughs in psychology, neuroscience, and biology. My hobbies include playing the guitar, going to the gym, and spending time outdoors.
David Lichte, BS
Technician
David graduated in 2023 from the University at Buffalo with a B.S. in Psychology. He is now a research technician in the Sands Lab managing molecular, surgical, and animal support for the lab. In his spare time, he likes to run, listen to music, and write.
Abigail U. Carbonell, MD, PhD
Postdoctoral fellow
Residency in Child Neurology, NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital and Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY
MD and PhD in Neuroscience, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY
MS in Biomedical Sciences, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY
BS in Molecular Biology and Microbiology, University of Central Florida, Orlando, FL
I have a long-standing interest in the pathogenesis of childhood brain disease, especially the genetic causes of rare neurodevelopmental syndromes and the effects of neurological disorders on behavior and cognition. During my PhD research, we discovered that haploinsufficiency in the synaptic gene ANKS1B (AIDA-1) caused autism, ADHD, and speech and motor deficits. Using molecular biology and proteomic approaches in mouse models and patient cell lines, we identified novel roles for ANKS1B in NMDA receptor subunit trafficking, synaptic Rho GTPase signaling, and oligodendrocyte development and function. As a postdoctoral research fellow at the Center for Translational Research in Neurodevelopmental Disease (CTRND), I have developed cellular, patient-derived, and mouse models to investigate mechanisms of disease and explore gene-based treatments for CSNK2B-associated neurodevelopmental disorders. In the Sands lab, we are currently testing the effects of CSNK2B loss on CK2 expression and activity, neuronal development, seizure susceptibility, and behaviors related to neurodevelopmental disorders. My off-campus interests include ballet, tennis, Tolkien, and heading out east to relax on a beach with my dogs.
Iya Prytkova, Ph.D.
Postdoctoral fellow
B.S. Biochemistry, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK
Ph.D. Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine, New York, NY
My research ethos centers on using human cellular models to study genetics of neuropsychiatric and neurodevelopmental disease. My Ph.D. work focused on alcohol use disorder genetics and ion channel physiology in human glutamatergic neurons. My current work in the Sands and Makinson labs is dedicated to CSNK2B-linked epilepsy and neurodevelopmental delay. As part of a bench-to-bedside team of researchers, I work with patient-derived fibroblasts, correcting CSNK2B mutations with gene editing, to generate and characterize isogenic human neuronal models. Outside of lab, I pursue a passion for painting, play Dungeons and Dragons, and hoard (and occasionally play) musical instruments.
Damian Williams, Ph.D.
BSc Pharmacology, Univ. of Edinburgh, UK
PhD Pharmacology, Univ. of Oxford, UK
I embarked on my research career at the University of Oxford where I obtained my doctorate studying how nicotinic receptors regulate neurotransmission in sympathetic nerves. I then moved to the US to carry out postdoctoral training, first at NIH and continuing at Columbia University. During this period, I investigated the mechanisms by which voltage gated calcium channels are regulated, before moving into the neurological disease field studying ALS using iPSC-derived motor neurons. Following this, I led the Electrophysiology and Calcium Imaging Section of Columbia University Stem Cell Core. I joined the IGM in 2017 where I focused on identifying changes to neuron function in several epilepsy models. At present, I continue this work, studying changes from the “ground up,” examining the biophysical properties of ion channels to higher level alterations in hippocampal and cortical microcircuitry . When not in the lab, Damian may be found playing squash or pleading with his daughter to be on time for school.
Alex Eaker, BS
Graduate student
Alex is a PhD student in the Pathobiology and Mechanisms of Disease program at Columbia University. He earned his undergraduate degree in Neuroscience from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC), where he conducted research on spinocerebellar ataxia in Dr. Jonathan Schisler’s lab. After graduating, Alex worked as a research technician in Dr. Katie Baldwin’s lab at UNC, investigating the role of a protein phosphatase in developing cortical astrocytes. Now, as a graduate student in the Makinson and Sands labs, Alex is eager to uncover novel mechanisms regulating neural cells in health and disease. Outside the lab, he enjoys attending live performances in the city, experimenting with new recipes in the kitchen, and learning to play the piano
Zahra Zhu, MD
Medical fellow
Residency in Child Neurology, NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital and Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY
MD, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, PA
BA in Biochemistry, New York University, New York, NY
I am currently in the pediatric neurology residency track. My interests include epilepsy, neurogenetics, and the application of clinical research to improve patient care. Prior to medical school, I conducted research in clinical cardiology and social psychology. During medical school, I designed and studied the effects of musical interventions to address loneliness in the older adult population via a randomized control trial. I also conducted a cross-sectional studying investigating the use of complementary and alternative medicine among pediatric patients with epilepsy. In the Sands lab, I am working on clinical CSNK2B research to better understand the spectrum of clinical manifestations among patients with this neurodevelopment syndrome.
During my free time, I enjoy making music, reading and spending time with family.
Ju Hee Son, B.A.
Student Researcher
B.A. Sociology, Biology, Cornell University
I'm a second-year dental student at Columbia University College of Dental Medicine (Class of 2028). I graduated from Cornell in 2019 with a major in sociology and a minor in biology. My interest in neuroscience sparked during a neurology course in my first year, after hearing Dr. Sands’ lecture on hereditary metabolic disorders—especially the genetic underpinnings of epilepsy.That curiosity led me to join this lab, where I’ve been excited to explore how clinical insights and translational research come together to better understand and treat genetic epilepsies. I was particularly drawn to the lab’s work on KCNQ2, KCNQ3, NBEA, and CSNK2B, and studies that use tools like patch-clamp recordings and EEG to clarify disease mechanisms and guide treatment—like the use of carbamazepine and repurposed drugs such as amitriptyline and donepezil.Currently, I’m working on the clinical side, focusing on KCNQ2 and KCNQ3 gain-of-function patients—who often present differently than loss-of-function cases, with epileptic spasms, severe EEG findings, and varied developmental challenges.
Outside the lab, you can find me walking through Central Park, checking out new restaurants, singing karaoke, or just spending time with friends.
Isabel Medrano
Undergraduate Intern
I am currently a senior at Columbia University studying Neuroscience and Behavior on the premedical track. Within the lab, I have worked on characterizing novel mutations in the genes KCNQ2 and KCNQ3 to help us better understand the clinical implications of these mutations. In my free time, I love to cheer on Arsenal, read a good thriller, and catch Broadway shows in the city!
Wayne Frankel, Ph.D.
Professor of Clinical Neurology
Staff curmudgeon
B.A. (Biology), The University of Pennsylvania
M.S. (Genetics), Albert Einstein Coll. Med.
Ph.D. (Genetics) Albert Einstein Coll. Med.
Postdoc, Tufts Univ School of Med.
From 1992 to 2024, first at The Jackson Laboratory (Bar Harbor, ME) and then at Columbia as a tenured Professor, my research lab was devoted to understanding the genetic basis of neurological disorders with an emphasis on epilepsy. My career-long approach is to model epilepsy as a complex trait at the physiological and molecular level using mouse genetics, genomics, neurophysiology and biochemistry in a variety of genes for human disease. Now, as a Professor of Clinical Neurology (in the Department of Genetics & Development) in close partnership with the Sands lab and with Scott Harper (Nationwide Children’s Hospital, Columbus, OH), I am lending my expertise to leverage mouse models for development of gene- and RNA-based therapies for developmental epileptic encephalopathies, the severe and largely intractable epilepsies that begin in early childhood. In my spare time I play music (guitar and piano) and enjoy outdoor activities. I have also been known to break, and then fix things around the house.
Celine Persad, B.S.
Technician
BA (Physiological Psychology/Biopsychology), CUNY Hunter College, New York, NY
AA (General Psychology), CUNY Queensborough Community College, Bayside, NY
Since my freshman year of college, I began to form a fascination with the study of neuropsychology, primarily in the category of neurodevelopmental disorders. Throughout my undergraduate years to obtaining my BA I spent numerous years in various brain and behavior research. First, starting with a macro level research looking at the rate of cortisol levels and its correlation to rates of suicide in NY state regions. Then I carried on to more animal-based research, investigating pre-pulse inhibition, dendritic integration, and social influence through mechanisms such as electrophysiology, and behavioral investigations in African Cichlids and Goldfishes. As well as looking at decision-making and cognition in Asian elephants. Now I am currently situated in the Sands lab where I am working on genetic causes of neurodevelopmental diseases, primarily epilepsy through mouse models. When I am not in a lab setting I enjoy hanging out with my parents and our family dog, playing video games, and traveling.