SARA ONVANI, M.A.

McLean title(s): Research Associate
Email: sonvani@mclean.harvard.edu
Telephone: (617) 855-2083
Fax: (617) 855-2023
Office Address: Behavioral Genetics Laboratory, MRC 215, Bay B
Degree(s): Sara received her Undergraduate Degree in Cell and Systems Biology, and her Masters Degree in Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology from the University of Toronto. For her Masters thesis, she investigated the effects of aberrant upregulation of the HGF/MET signaling pathway on medulloblastoma pathogenesis. To do this, she: 1) worked to develop a transgenic mouse model for medulloblastoma with cerebellar-specific activated HGF/MET signaling, and 2) examined the role that mutation plays in overactivation of the HGF/MET pathway in medulloblastoma by performing a mutational analysis on a cohort of primary human medulloblastoma specimens.
Bio: Sara began her work at McLean Hospital in 2011 in the Behavioral Genetics Laboratory with Dr. Bill Carlezon. She manages and maintains the kappa transgenic mouse colony. She also examines the neurobiology of depression and other mood disorders by utilizing various molecular and behavioral techniques.