Assistant Professor, Princeton Neuroscience Institute

Affiliate faculty mentor: QCB graduate program

[google scholar]

Fenna received her BA at UC Berkeley and her Ph.D. from Harvard, where she studied the topography of cortico-cortical and cortico-cerebellar networks in human brains. In her postdoc with Steve McCarroll (Genetics @ Harvard Medical School and the Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research @ The Broad Institute), she used single cell sequencing approaches to study how brain cell types diverge across mammalian species. Fenna is a SFARI BTI Fellow and a Klingenstein-Simons Fellow. Unapologetic Celtics fan. Simply not that good at latte art.

Lab Manager;

Senior Research Specialist

Jessica received both her BSc and MSc degrees from the University of Toronto. Jessica has a broad interest in evolution and understanding how biological systems work. Prior to joining the Krienen lab, she worked in a number of academic labs and brings a wide range of skills to the team. She is an avid baker and loves plants!

Postdoc

Siting obtained her PhD in Neurobiology from the Institute of Neuroscience, Chinese Academy of Sciences. During her graduate study, she mainly focused on the molecular and cellular mechanisms of brain development as well as the pathogenesis of neurodevelopmental disorders. Her current research interest is uncovering the genetic evolution that characterizes primate cortical development. She enjoys reading, running and climbing in her spare time.

Bioinformatician

Mike is a Research Software Engineer shared between the Krienen and Peña labs here at PNI. In both labs, Mike works on the computational analysis and integration of single-cell genomics data. He has a BS in Biochemistry from Brown University and a PhD in Genetics and Genomics from Cornell University, where, under mentor John Lis, he used functional genomics methods to study the mechanisms through which gene transcription is regulated. In his free time, Mike enjoys cooking, music, hiking, and shredding guitar.

PNI Ph.D. student

Yongqi received his B.S. from University of Chinese Academy of Sciences. In his undergraduate he spent one and half years at MIT studying autism in mouse models and identifying specific enhancers for striatal neuron types. He is interested in using bioinformatic and molecular tools to understand cognitive functions and how they are affected under disease conditions. Outside the lab, he is a passionate badminton player and enjoys many outdoor activities.

PNI Ph.D. student

Daisy graduated from Colby College majoring in neuroscience with minors in physics and computer science. After college, she worked at the Klengel lab and the Berretta lab at McLean Hospital studying the transcriptomics and epigenetics of stress-related psychiatric disorders. Currently, she is interested in using multi-omics to understand the molecular composition and cell type development in the brain across species. Outside the lab, she enjoys cooking, bouldering, and spending time with her cats.

PNI Ph.D. student

Ning studied computer science at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), minoring in bioinformatics. During this time, he learned about single-cell RNA sequencing technologies and methods development with gene regulatory networks at the Xia Yang Lab. He also interned with the Allen Institute for Brain Science, focusing on multi-omics integration methodologies, with whom he will continue to collaborate during his PhD while exploring cross-species comparisons in human and mammalian brain atlases in the Krienen Lab. Outside of research, Ning loves to play piano and is learning the complete Chopin Etudes (Op. 10 and Op. 25).

Research Specialist II

Victor received a BSs in Genomics from UNAM and an Erasmus Mundus MSc in Evolutionary Biology from Uppsala University and LMU. For his thesis, he studied the behavioral and neural effects of prolonged olfactory exposure (Thomas Frank Lab) and implemented a protein structure-based method for genome annotation (Gilles Laurent Lab). He is broadly interested in brain evolution and molecular specializations. In his free time he enjoys running, exploring new places, and watching films.

Research Specialist

Lakme received her Bachelor’s of Science in human biology from UC San Diego. Her studies were primarily focused on physiology and microbial genomics. Throughout her undergraduate studies she worked in research labs investigating the ants of Arizona’s mountains, diatoms off of San Diego’s coast, and the bacterial landscape of California’s nearshore microbial community. She hopes to pursue a career in clinical or anatomic pathology where she can continue exploring the mechanisms of human disease. In her free time, Lakme enjoys weightlifting, playing video games, and watching psychological thrillers.

PNI Ph.D. rotation student

Brenna received her BA from Vassar College, majoring in Neuroscience and Behavior with a minor in Hispanic Studies. After graduating, she worked for two years in Ilana Witten’s lab at PNI studying striatal circuits involved in learning, memory, and decision-making. As a graduate student, she is currently interested in studying resilience and susceptibility to chronic stress, and the molecular and circuit-level mechanisms that underly these different outcomes.

PNI Ph.D. rotation student

Zachary received his bachelor of science from the University of Chicago, where he majored in neuroscience and minored in philosophy. While there, he worked in the Claud Lab, studying how two bacterial conditions that frequently affect preterm infants, necrotizing enterocolitis and chorioamnionitis, lead to gene expression modifications in the blood-brain barrier and subsequent neurodevelopmental impairment. He is broadly interested in neurogenetics, especially as it relates to early-life development. Outside of the lab, he enjoys playing jazz bass and guitar, cycling, tennis, and chess.

Undergrad

Minal is Princeton NEU '25 major.  Her curiosity of the mechanisms behind memory and learning led her to this exciting new field, but she hopes to learn even more about the level of cellular diversity and evolution in the lab.  Outside of classes, she loves to spend time in nature, go on adventures, and travel.

Undergrad

Ruqaya '25 is neuroscience major at Princeton University. She is interested in the development of the brain and how neurodevelopmental disorders impact the regions of the brain and behavior. Outside of the lab and classes, Ruqaya enjoys reading, playing and watching soccer.

Undergrad

Olivia '26 is a Neuroscience concentrator at Princeton University. She is interested in researching neurogenetics and developing genetically driven treatments for neurodegenerative diseases that do not currently have an effective treatment. Outside of the lab and classes, Olivia enjoys dancing, playing tennis, and baking.

Undergrad

Aomi ’26 is a prospective neuroscience major on the pre-med track at Princeton University. She is interested in learning about neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease and Huntington's disease, and understanding their impact on the brain from a molecular perspective. Outside of the lab, Aomi enjoys going to the beach and hiking.

Undergrad

Tuba '26 is a neuroscience major considering a minor/certificate in bioengineering. She is passionate about studying neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, and is particularly interested in neurodevelopmental conditions like autism. Outside of the lab, Tuba enjoys singing with the Princeton Tigerlilies and the Princeton Glee Club, reading, cooking, or being suspended acrobatically from aerial silks.

Faculty Assistant

Jessica graduated from Rutgers University with a B.A. in Neuroscience and Behavior with a minor in Chemistry. She supports several PNI labs as a faculty assistant. Outside of her role at PNI, Jessica loves to read and is trying to get through a long reading list.

Pedro Estrada (PNI PhD rotation student)

Sunny Mudhar (Research Specialist I, now M.D. student at Albert Einstein

Reilly Nakamoto (Research Specialist II)

Zixuan Zhang (visiting student, Nagoya University)

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