Assistant Professor
Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences
Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research CenterDavid Geffen School of Medicine, UCLA
Broad Stem Cell Research Center
ldelatorre@ucla.edu
310-794-7537
Gonda 2309
Educational Background:
PhD Neurobiology, Harvard University
BS Biology, University of Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras
Research Project:
We are developing in vitro models of autism that can be harnessed as a therapeutic screening tool and as a robust platform to study neuronal development. We are manipulating the expression of autism-associated genes in human neural progenitors with lentiviral vectors and inducing differentiation of these cells into neurons. We will then perform transcriptional profiling using RNA-seq and morphological characterization of these human neural progenitors at several points along their differentiation into neurons. Finally, we will then screen in silico for potential chemical compounds predicted to normalize these transcriptional signatures and test them in neural progenitors for normalization of neuronal morphology and transcriptional profiles. These studies will help us understand the signaling mechanisms associated with autism spectrum disorders from different genetic etiologies and hopefully help us discover potential therapeutic avenues.
Joined the lab:
2011
