Education
2019 - 2024
2010 - 2013
2008 - 2009
Work Experience
2024
2019 - 2024
2022
2018 - 2019
2017 - 2018
2016 - 2017
2016
2010 - 2013
Jobs not listed that I have worked since 14 years old: office secretary, grocery store cashier, farmer (chickens, egg delivery to Asheville grocery stores and restaurants, training horses, working in fruit fields, etc), waitress, spa attendant, rock climbing gym belayer and front desk, outdoor trip leader, sponsored rock-climbing athlete, Kmart cashier, Bath & Body works cashier, small business startup/bookstore cashier, baby sitting, dog sitting, dog walker, baker, barista, bakery cashier and worker, camp counselor, outdoor guide, and cashier/late night food prep at Au Bon Pain.
Publications
2024
2024
2024
Edwards, M., Nguyen, H., Dodson, A., Herbertson, A., Wolden-Hanson, T., Wietecha, T., Honeycutt, M., Slattery, J., O’Brien, K., Graham, J., Havel, P., Mundinger, T., Sikkema, C., Peskind, E., Ryu, V., Taborsky, G., Blevins, J. Sympathetic innervation of interscapular brown adipose tissue is not a predominant mediator of OT-elicited reductions of body weight and adiposity in male diet-induced obese mice. (Preparing for submission in May.)
2022
Edwards, M., Lam, S., Ranjan, R., Pereira, M., Babbitt, C., & Lacreuse, A. (2022). Letrozole treatment alters hippocampal gene expression in common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus). Hormones and Behavior, 147, 105281. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yhbeh.2022.105281
2022
Freire-Cobo, C., Rothwell, E., Varghese, M., Edwards, M., William, G.M., Lacreuse, A., Hof, P. (2022) Neuronal vulnerability to brain aging and neurodegeneration in cognitively impaired marmoset monkeys (Callithrix jacchus). Neurobiology of Aging.
2021
Edwards, M., Nguyen, H., Dodson, A., Herbertson, A., Wietecha, T., Wolden-Hanson, T., Graham, J., Honeycutt, M., Slattery, J., O’Brien, K., Havel, P., Blevins, J. (2021) Effects of Combined Oxytocin and Beta-3 Receptor Agonist (CL 316243) Treatment on Body Weight and Adiposity in Male Diet-Induced Obese Rats. Frontiers in Physiology.
2021
Rothwell, E. S., Cobo, C. F., Varghese, M., Edwards, M., Janssen, W. G. M., Hof, P. R., & Lacreuse, A. (2021) The marmoset as an important primate model for longitudinal studies of neurocognitive aging. American Journal of Primatology, e23271.https://doi.org/10.1002/ajp.2327
2021
Edwards, M., Nguyen, H., Herbertson, A., Dodson, A., Wietecha, T., Wolden-Hanson, T., Graham, J., Havel, P., Blevins, J. Chronic Hindbrain Administration of Oxytocin is Sufficient to Elicit Weight Loss in Male Diet-Induced Obese Mice. American Journal of Physiology.
2020
2020
Edwards, M., Johnson, M., Fernandez, R., Montgomery, B., Adelaja, A., Akingbade, T. Mentoring to foster a diverse future. Cell Press, 183, 3, 561–563 (2020).
De Vries, S., Lacoq, J., Buice, M., Groblewski, P., [and 71 others including Edwards, M.] The Allen Brain Observatory: An open, standardized physiological survey reveals higher order coding throughout the mouse visual cortex. Nature Neuroscience 23, 138–151 (2020).
Technical Skills
Molecular Biology: RNA-seq (RNA extraction, bioanalyzer, Qubit, library preparation, cell sorting, etc), RT-qPCR, cell culture (human, primate), iPSC differentiation, ELISA, MSD, confocal microscopy and immunofluorescence protocols, flow cytometry/FACS, lipid and metabolite extraction.
Data & Coding: R, RStudio, Python, Linux/Unix command line, cloud computing (Unity cluster: https://unity.rc.umass.edu/), Graphpad Prism, QC software (i.e., fastqc, multiqc), genome assembly, indexing, mapping, and counting (e.g., STAR), variant detection, GSEA software, R packages (e.g., DESeq2, edgeR, Seurat, etc.), RNAseq computational workflows, Rmarkdown, Github.
Animal Behavior: Primate (marmosets, pigtailed macaque, rhesus macaque), bird (bluebird, tree swallow, osprey surveys), and rodent (rat, mice) behavior in laboratory settings; field work (bluebirds, tree swallows, turtles, hellbenders, flying squirrels, bats and echolocation surveys, etc), cognitive testing (CANTAB, WGTA, etc.), animal husbandry (e.g., managing mouse breeding colony, primate colonies, animal enrichment, etc).
Surgery: Cranial windowing surgeries, AAV injections, brain cannulas (3V and 4V), temperature transponder implants, minipump implants, humane perfusion (rats, mice, primates) and euthanasia, surgical and chemical denervation of brown adipose tissue, brain extraction, tissue collection, and tissue dissection (brain, fat [IBAT, IWAT, EWAT], liver, gonads, etc.)
Presentations
Edwards, M. Letrozole treatment alters hippocampal gene expression in common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus). Rising Stars Symposium. San Diego, CA. May 2024.
Edwards, M., Lam, S., Pereira, M., Lacreuse, A., Babbitt, C. Letrozole treatment alters hippocampal gene expression in common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus). IBANGS Conference. Galway, Ireland. May 2023.
Edwards, M., Nguyen, H., Herbertson, A., Dodson, A., Vered, R., Wolden-Hanson, T., Graham, J., Havel, P., Mundinger, T., Sikkema, C, Peskind, E., Nguyen, N., Ryu, V., Taborsky, G., Blevins, J. Sympathetic innervation of interscapular brown adipose tissue is not required for oxytocin (OT) to elicit weight loss and promote BAT thermogenesis in DIO mice. Experimental Biology Conference. [Virtual Conference.] March 2021.
Edwards, M., Lam, S., Ranjan, R., Pereira, M., Remage-Healey, L., Babbitt, C., Huang, W., Winokur, S., Silva-Gotay, A., Lacreuse, A. Aromatase inhibition and gene expression of aromatase and estrogen receptors in the marmoset hippocampus. Marmoset Bioscience Symposium [Virtual Conference.] October 2020.
Edwards, M., Nguyen, H.K., Herbertson, A.J., Dodson, A.D., Wietecha, T., Wolden-Hanson, T., Graham, J.L., Havel, P.J, and J.E. Blevins. Chronic hindbrain administration of oxytocin elicits weight loss in high fat diet induced obese mice. Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior meeting. Portland, Oregon. July 2020.
Edwards, M. Age-related Cognitive Decline in the Common Marmoset. Data Blitz Speaker at the NEURON Conference at Quinnipiac University in North Haven, Connecticut. February 2020.
Golub, E., Edwards, M., Workman, K., Lacreuse, A. Olfactory Discrimination in the Common Marmoset. NEURON Conference at Quinnipiac University. North Haven, Connecticut. February 2020.
Blevins, J.E., Edwards, M., Nguyen, H., Herbertson, A., Dodson, A., Wietecha, T., Wolden-Hanson, T., Graham, J., and Havel, P. Chronic hindbrain administration of oxytocin elicits weight loss in high fat diet induced obese mice. Experimental Biology Meeting. San Diego, CA, April 2020.
Blevins, J., Edwards, M., Nguyen, H., Herbertson, A., Dodson, A., Wolden-Hanson, T., Graham, J., and Havel, P. Effects of combined oxytocin and beta-3 receptor agonist (CL 316243) treatment on body weight and adiposity in high fat diet-induced obese rats. Experimental Biology Meeting. San Diego, CA, April 2020.
Edwards, M., E. Rothwell, K. Workman, A. Lacreuse. “The Marmoset as a Model for Human Cognitive Aging.” Poster presentation delivered at the Center for Neuroendocrine Studies Symposium, Amherst, MA. September 2019.
Edwards, M., Nguyen, H., Roberts, Z., Wolden-Hanson, T., Chukri, D., Ryu, V., Vaughan, C., Bales, K., Graham, J., Havel, P., and Blevins, J. Chronic oxytocin treatment elicits weight loss in diet-induced obese rodents and nonhuman primates. 13th World Congress on Neurohypophysial Hormones. Dead Sea, Palestine. April 2019.
Cho, A., Edwards, M., Groblewski, P., Howard, R., Luviano, J., Mace, K., Nayan, C., Swapp, J., Taylor, T., Williford, A., Zeng, H. Optimization of Surgical Training for Production and Non-Production Projects. Allen Institute Showcase Symposium. Seattle, WA. December 2017.
Fellowships and Awards
Apr 2024
Allen Institute Workshop Award; Selected to attend the “Describe Your Neuron like the Allen Institute” workshop.
May 2023
IBANGS Travel Award; Travel award in the amount of $500 to attend the IBANGS conference in Galway, Ireland.
Apr 2023
Center for Research on Families Dissertation Award; Research funds of $1,000 towards dissertation work.
Sept 2021
AAIC Neuroscience Next Excellence in Neuroscience Mentoring Award; Award recognizing excellence in mentoring for future generations of neuroscientists.
June 2021
GWIS Research Award; Research funds in the amount of $5,400.
June 2021
Apr 2021
Apr 2021
Apr 2021
Mar 2021
Dec 2020
June 2020
HHMI Gilliam Fellowship; Funding for three years of my PhD program and DEI projects, totaling $150,000.
Wendy Helmer Award, Award ($300) given to a graduate student or students who work to foster an environment of collaboration and support and improve the overall quality of life in the department and/or their program.
Society for Behavioral Neuroscience Welcome Initiative Award; Award including free membership and registration for the 2021 virtual conference.
Organization for the Study of Sex Differences (OSSD) Virtual Travel Award equivalent to $125.
Ford Foundation Predoctoral Fellowship; Funding for three years of my PhD program, totaling $81,000
Graduate School Predissertation Grant; University of Massachusetts Amherst Research award of $1,000.
Early Career Award; Neuroscience and Behavior PhD Program.
May 2020
Society for Neuroscience; Selected to be a Neuro Scholars Program (NSP) Associate.
April 2020
NSF GRFP, University of Massachusetts Amherst; Honorable Mention.
Aug 2019
Spaulding Smith Fellowship*, UMass Amherst. Two years of PhD funding, totaling approximately $60,000.
April 2020
Center for Research on Families, University of Massachusetts Amherst Travel Award of $300.
April 2020
Center for Research on Families, UMass Amherst Grant Writing Graduate Program acceptance to write an F31.
Aug 2019
2008 - 2013
On Ramp Program Awardee, UMass Amherst; Early admittance to participate in professional workshops. Additional award of $500.
Pell Grant, Need-based aid for families who collectively made less than 20,000 per year.
Aug 2013
2024
2024
BINC Fellowship*, Appalachian State University; BINC Scholar receiving $5,000.
Relevant Graduate Coursework & Workshops
2024
High Performance Bioinformatics Journal Club, UMass Amherst (Amherst, MA)
2023
Genome Informatics, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL)
2023
Statistics for Genomic Data Science, Coursera (Online)
Current Service Work
2019 - Present
2020 - Present
2023
Single-cell Genomics Workshop, Festival of Genomics & Biodata (Boston, MA)
2023
High Performance Bioinformatics Journal Club, UMass Amherst (Amherst, MA)
2023
Functional Interpretation of GWAS Data, IBANGS Conference (Galway, Ireland)
2023
Genomic Approaches to Food Science, UMass Amherst (Amherst, MA)
2021
Big Data & Bioinformatics User Group, UMass Amherst (Amherst, MA)
2020
Evolutionary Genomics & Bioinformatics, UMass Amherst (Amherst, MA)
2020
Synapses, Circuits & Behavior Journal Club, UMass Amherst (Amherst, MA)
2020
Biological Rhythms Journal Club, UMass Amherst (Amherst, MA)
2019
Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Neuroscience, UMass Amherst (Amherst, MA)
MUSE Mentorship Inc. (501c3)
Co-Founder, President
Created a 501c3 nonprofit connecting underrepresented mentors to underrepresented students applying to college or graduate STEM programs with the goal of providing mentorship and representation. Recruited 25 mentors across STEM disciplines, managed a Board of Directors, crowdfunded over $40,000 to set up scholarship funds for underrepresented students and sought pro-bono legal help, accountants, and consultants to file in the state of Massachusetts. Mentored six underrepresented students through MUSE who are applying to medical school or graduate school.
Bioinformatics User Group (BUG)
Steering Committee Member
Coordinate with leading bioinformaticians at UMas Amherst to facilitate monthly bioinformatic user group (BUG) meetings, workshops, and plan events to encourage scientific labs to incorporate bioinformatics into their research.
Previous Service Work
2019 - 2021
2019 - 2021
2019 - 2021
Graduate Student Senate
Senator
Serving as a student senator organizing and voting on issues that affect graduate student housing. Member of the Food Security Subcommittee and volunteer at student food pantry.
Outreach Committee
Member, Volunteer
Participated in the Eureka! Girls Inc. Brain Science Day by leading a workshop on neuroanatomy for middle school girls. Regular attendance at board meetings, volunteer, and mentor at monthly Outreach events.
Outreach Committee
Member, Volunteer
Participated in the Eureka! Girls Inc. Brain Science Day by leading a workshop on neuroanatomy for middle school girls. Regular attendance at board meetings, volunteer, and mentor at monthly Outreach events.
2019 - 2020
Central Rock Gym
Volunteer and co-creator of Women’s Climb Night
Created a monthly women’s climbing night to provide a safe space for women and gender nonconforming people to climb and cultivate an empowering, supportive community.
2019 - 2022
Letters to a PreScientist
Volunteer, Pen Pal
Wrote monthly letters to middle school students to communicate my research while encouraging their interests in neuroscience and STEM.
2019 - 2021
Organizing Committee — 3 Minute Thesis
Volunteer
Advise graduate student participants on practice session rounds, work with competitors and judges to facilitate events, manage the People’s Choice ballot process and organize a “Community Day” to showcase the graduate student research to the public.
2018
VA Puget Sound Research Safety Subcommittee
Member, Safety Officer
Attended monthly meetings to review incoming investigators’ protocols. Inspected research labs for research safety and compliance.
2016 - 2019
Vertical Generation Movement Events
Board Member, Volunteer, Mentor
Mentored underserved youth at monthly Movement Climbing Events to bring rock climbing to those who may otherwise be unable to participate. Mentored high school students from the TAF Academy for a day of rock climbing and a campus tour of the University of Washington, providing information on applying to college.
Previous service not listed: volunteer at animal shelters, churches, and free meal programs since I was 6, Climbing Towards Confidence mentor and volunteer for young Black girls who were victims of abuse and sexual violence (year long mentorship when I dropped out of college), spring break trip leader to volunteer with the Exotic Feline Rescue center in Indiana (ASU), served on almost one dozen committees, antiracism task forces, and DEI groups from 2019 - 2022 (UMass).
Invited Research Talks
May 2024
Rising Stars Symposium, Sanford Burnham Prebys
Apr 2022
“Sex, Gender and the Brain” invited course speaker at Harvard University
Apr 2022
BIPOC in Genomics Symposium, Stamford, CT
June 2021
Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology: panelist for LISTEN session titled “Creating Supportive & Inclusive Environments to Retain Underrepresented Groups.”
Apr 2021
Black in CNS: panel connecting Black undergraduate students with Black graduate students in the College of Natural Sciences to talk about graduate school.
Nov 2020
GABAergic dysfunction in excitatory / inhibitory imbalance drives the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s Disease. International presentation of Bi et al (2020) paper for Alzheimer’s and Dementia ISTAART Journal Club at Neuroscience Next.
Oct 2020
Edwards, M. The importance of representative mentorship. Invited Speaker for the DASL Symposium hosted by the University of California San Diego. Virtual Event. October 2020.
Oct 2020
Leading women in neuroscience. Invited speaker for Women in Neuroscience panel. Virtual Event.
Aug 2020
Black in Neuroscience panel on mentorship and educational outreach. Invited speaker.
Aug 2020
Spaulding-Smith panel for first year PhD students. Invited speaker.
Aug 2020
Resume
University of Massachusetts Amherst
Doctor of Philosophy, Neuroscience and Behavior
Appalachian State University
Bachelor’s in Evolutionary Biology, Ecology; French minor
Virginia Tech
Major: Biology
University of California San Francisco
Postdoctoral Research Fellow
University of Massachusetts Amherst
Graduate Student and PhD Candidate
Denali Therapeutics
In Vivo Intern
VA Puget Sound / SIBCR
Lab Manager
Allen Institute for Brain Science
Research Associate I
Allen Institute for Brain Science
Animal Technician II
Washington National Primate Research Center
Animal Technician
Appalachian State University
Undergraduate Student Researcher
Edwards, M.M., Nguyen, H.K., Dodson, A.D., Herbertson, A.J., Wolden-Hanson, T., Wietecha, T., Honeycutt, M.K., Slattery, J.D., O’Brien, K.D., Graham, J.L., Havel, P.J., Mundinger, T.O., Sikkema, C.L., Peskind, E.R., Ryu, V., Taborsky, G.J., Jr. and Blevins, J.E. Sympathetic innervation of interscapular brown adipose tissue is not a predominant mediator of OT-elicited reductions of body weight and adiposity in male diet-induced obese mice. BioRxiv 596425 [Preprint], June 2, 2024. Available from: doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.05.29.596425.
Edwards, M., Kang, H., Babbitt, C. Estradiol as a modulator of synaptic homeostasis in Alzheimer’s disease. (Preparing for submission in June.)
Describe Your Neuron Like the Allen Institute (Seattle, WA)
Computational Biology & Bioinformatics (Audit), UMass Amherst (Amherst, MA)
Neuroscience and Behavior panel for first year PhD students.