Her research project will focus on the hippocampus’ relation to memory.
Zahra Dhanerawala’s research is off to a successful start in 2025.
A graduate student in the lab of Edward Han, PhD, pursuing an MD and PhD in neuroscience, Dhanerawala was awarded an American Heart Association (AHA) Predoctoral Fellowship to further her research into the connection between the hippocampus and memory.
“The AHA fellowship will provide me with the resources, professional network and support to continue improving our understanding of the brain, specifically how memories form and how to treat memory disorders,” she said. “By understanding how memory works in the hippocampus, this study might lead to new treatments for memory problems that could keep or fix memory, making life better for patients and their families.”
The two-year Predoctoral Fellowship bolsters the training of promising students in a predoctoral or clinical health professional degree program who are eyeing careers as scientists, physician-scientists or other clinician-scientists, or related careers improving global health and wellbeing.
Dhanerawala’s research project, Targeting Neuronal Circuits for Improving Memory, will focus on two main questions: How do vasoactive intestinal peptide (VIP) neurons in the hippocampus affect memory and the brain’s ability to remember where things are, and what part do hippocampal somatostatin (SOM) neurons play in the process?
“Figuring this out is important to understand how memory works,” she said. “We will use new methods we developed to monitor and control these brain cells in mice as they move in a virtual world. This work helps us learn how VIP and SOM neurons and their interactions with other cells affect learning and memory.”
After graduating from Simmons University with a Bachelor of Science in mathematics, biochemistry and biostatistics, Dhanerawala worked for two years as a research specialist in the lab of Sam Wang, PhD, at Princeton University. She is an alumnus of the Brain Cogs project based at Princeton and the University of California, Davis.
She has been a member of the Han Lab since 2023.
“Working in the Han Lab has been instrumental in my research career over the past two years,” Dhanerawala said. “I have learned cutting-edge techniques, worked with a team and mentored undergraduate and junior students — all critical elements for successful experiments and research progress. I am especially thankful for Dr. Han’s guidance, both at the bench and professionally, throughout my PhD journey.”
After completing her PhD, Dhanerawala plans to return to medical school, finish her MD and continue her career in a research-focused medical residency at an academic institution.
“As an MD/PhD student, I am very interested in using our basic science understanding of the brain to help patients lead a better life,” she said. “I hope to form a research program centered around mechanisms of memory formation as a physician-scientist and integrate my clinical knowledge and scientific training to tackle unsolved questions in the field that have the largest impact on patient lives.”