People
Pinchas Cohen, MD
Professor of Gerontology, Medicine and Biological Sciences;
Dean, USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology;
William and Sylvia Kugel Dean’s Chair in Gerontology;
Executive Director, Ethel Percy Andrus Gerontology Center
Education
- MD, Faculty of Medicine, Technion, Haifa, Israel, 1986
- Postdoctoral training, Stanford University, 1986-1992
Pinchas Cohen, MD, trained at Stanford and held his first faculty position at the University of Pennsylvania from 1992 to 1999. Until 2012, he was a professor and Vice Chair for Research at the Mattel Children’s Hospital at UCLA, as well as the Co-Director of the UCSD/UCLA Diabetes Research Center.
He received numerous awards for his research, including a National Institute of Aging “EUREKA”-Award, the NIH-Director-Transformative RO1-Grant, and the Glenn Award for Research in Biological Mechanisms of Aging.
He holds several patents for novel peptides and is the co-founder of CohBar, a biotechnology company developing mitochondrial peptides for diseases of aging. Cohen has published over 300 papers in top scientific journals focusing on aging, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, cancer, growth hormone/IGF-biology and the emerging science of mitochondrial-derived peptides, which he pioneered.
Contact:
Email: mkflores@usc.edu
Melanie Flores
PhD Student
Melanie is a Molecular Biology PhD student at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. She has a BS in Microbiology from California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. Her research interests include mitochondrial genetics and the effects of mitochondrial-derived peptides on cancer and tumor regulation.
Outside of the lab, she spends her time cooking pad thai and walking her dog.
Brendan Miller, MS
PhD Student
Brendan Miller is a Neuroscience Graduate Program PhD student at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. Miller studies mitochondrial genetics, neurodegeneration, and mitochondrial-derived peptides in the Cohen lab. His research interests include identifying the effect of mitochondrial single nucleotide polymorphisms on novel mitochondrial-derived peptides in Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.
Outside of the lab, Brendan closely follows the 2016 World Series Champion Chicago Cubs, crunches baseball statistics, and plays a variety of sports.
Contact:
Email: zreyna@usc.edu
Zeferino Reyna
PhD Student
Education
- BA, Biological Sciences, UCSB
- MS, Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, USC
Zeferino Reyna is a Molecular Biology Graduate Program PhD student at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. He is interested in understanding the interplay between mitochondrial-derived peptides and the immune system that lead to inflammatory diseases and aging with the hope that one day we will put these ailments behind us.
Outside of the lab, Zeferino likes to unwind with a bottle of good wine and cheese, while relaxing at the beach. He enjoys most sports, but especially water sports.
Ana Silverstein
PhD Student
Ana Silverstein is a Molecular Biology PhD student at the USC Leonard Davis School of Geronotology, where she researches the interconnected relationship between mitochondrial function and the immune system. In prioritizing mitochondrial genetics, she intends to better understand the dynamic phenomenon of immune system malfunction in aging populations from the unique perspective of the mitochondria. Outside of the lab, Ana can be found catching waves at the beach, hitting the slopes, or out on an adventure with her dog, Cas.
Su-Jeong Kim, PhD
Research Assistant Professor
Education
PhD, Biology, 2012
Su-Jeong Kim, PhD, is a Research Assistant Professor at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. Her contributions to the Cohen lab include generating a database of Mitochondrial-derived peptides from genomics and peptidomics. Additionally, she studies the roles of mitochondrial-derived peptides in neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s diseases. Kim’s research has been funded by Glenn/AFAR Postdoctoral Fellowship Program for Translational Research on Aging and USC Provost’s Postdoctoral Scholar Research Grant. Outside of the lab, she spends her time cooking and hiking.
Hiroshi Kumagai, PhD
Research Assistant Professor
Hiroshi Kumagai, PhD, is a Research Assistant Professor at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. He studies the relationship between East-Asian specific mtDNA polymorphism in the MOTS-c and type 2 diabetes. His research interests include identifying the effects of mitochondrial-derived peptides on skeletal muscle properties and functions.
Junxiang Wan, MD, PhD
Research Assistant Professor
Aging Biomarker Core Director
Education
- MD, Preventive Medicine, Nanjing Railway Medical College, Naijing, China, 1991
- PhD, Fudan University, Shanghai, China, 1997
- Postdoctoral Training, Occupational Health, UCLA School of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA, 2002
Junxiang Wan, MD, PhD, is a Research Assistant Professor and director of the Aging Biomarker and Service Core at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. Wan has extensive training in molecular biology, cell biology and immunology. She is an expert in the field of novel assay development, and has extensive experience in academic research work. Wan has mastered novel ELISA assays for the entire human and murine IGF/IGFBP system, has developed numerous IGFs and is involved in the Cohen lab’s discovery of a novel family of mitochondrial-derived peptides (MDPs), including humanin, SHLPs and MOTS-c that signal to regulate cellular metabolism and survival.
The Aging Biomarker and Service Core services include the following:
- cytokines measurement
- Alzheimer-related markers (Amyloid beta, phospho-tau) measurement
- hormones measurement including GH, human and mouse IGF-I& IGFBPs, etc.
- metabolic biomarkers measurement including insulin, leptin and adiponectin
- mitochondrial derived peptides (MDPs) measurement including humanin and the other novel MDPs
- new assay development
Kelvin Yen, PhD
Research Associate Professor
Education
- BA, Molecular Cell Biology: Neurobiology, UC Berkeley, 1999
- PhD, Neuroscience, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, 2008
Kelvin Yen, PhD, is a Research Associate Professor at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. Yen studies mitochondrial control of aging and healthspan at the Cohen lab. His research interests include aging, neuroscience, and mitochondria.
Outside of the lab, he spends his time raising his kids and sleeping.
Roberto Vicinanza, MD, PhD
Instructional Assistant Professor
Roberto Vicinanza, MD, PhD, is an Italian physician and a certified specialist in Geriatric Medicine from Sapienza University of Rome, the largest university in Europe and one of the most prestigious Italian universities, commonly ranking first in national rankings. Vicinanza focused his clinical training on the complex management and treatment of acute and chronic diseases in older adults at the Geriatric Clinic of Policlinico Umberto I University Hospital in Rome, where he also conducted clinical studies on the Mediterranean Diet and age-related diseases. He then completed his post-doctoral training with Pinchas Cohen at USC, investigating the emerging science of mitochondrial-derived peptides. Vicinanza is an instructional assistant professor of gerontology, currently teaching several courses at USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. His lectures include the fundamentals of nutrition for the Master of Science in Nutrition, Healthspan and Longevity coordinated program, and classes for the Master of Arts in Medical Gerontology program. He also conducts research on the Mediterranean Diet and on the role of mitochondrial dysfunction in age-related diseases in the Cohen Lab.
Hemal Mehta, MSc, MS
Lab Manager
Seahorse Core Director
Education
- MSc, Microbiology, 1999
- MS, Molecular and Cellular Biology, 2002
Hemal H. Mehta is a Research Lab Specialist / Lab Manager and Seahorse Core Director at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. Mehta is in charge of maintaining and studying the healthspan and lifespan studies involving MDP transgenic/ knock down mice models or mice injected with MDPs.
Mehta directs Gerontology Seahorse Core that measures oxygen consumption rate (OCR) and extracellular acidification rate (ECAR) in the cell lines, primary cells, isolated mitochondria, and worms (C.elegans).
Regina Braniff
Research Lab Technician
Education
Bachelor of Science, Microbiology and Immunology, 2019
Regina is a research technician at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. Her research interests include investigating the relationship between mitochondrial dysfunction and neurodegeneration, as well as the role of diet and nutrition on mitochondrial health and disease outcomes.
Kevin Cao
Research Lab Technician
Contact:
Email: rr64794@usc.edu
Ricardo Ramirez II
Laboratory Technician II
Ricardo Ramirez II is a technician at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. Ramirez studies mitochondrial-derived peptides involved in diabetes and cancer. He uses cellular models of adipose, muscle and liver tissue to understand the mechanism of action of mitochondrial-derived peptides.
Yuzhu Wang
Research Lab Technician
Education
- Bachelor Degree, Biotechnology, 2017
- Master’s Degree, Experimental Molecular Pathology, 2020
Yuzhu is a Research Lab Technician at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. Wang studies mitochondrial-derived peptides at the Cohen Lab. Wang’s research interests include the function of mitochondrial peptides in aging by cellular models and mouse models.
Outside of the lab, she spends her time on horticulture and reading.
Michael Agus, MD
Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard
Qinglei Gao, MD, PhD
Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Tongji Medical College
Adda Grimberg, MD, FAAP
Associate Professor of Pediatrics, University of Pennsylvania
Natalie Kaiser
MHA Resident, Keck Medicine, University of Southern California
Lorraine Katz, MD
Associate Professor of Pediatrics, University of Pennsylvania
David Lee, PhD
Assistant Professor of Gerontology, USC
Kuk-Wha Lee, M.D., PhD
Associate Professor of Pediatrics, UCLA
Jiali Liu,
Post Doctoral Fellow Alumni
Irene Netchine, MD
Director of Laboratory, APHP
Peter Poon, Ph.D.
Head of Program, Integrated Science Program
Stuart Weinzimer, MD
Associate Professor of Pediatrics (Endocrinology) and Associate Clinical Professor of Nursing, Yale
Lara (Nikki) Windisch
Student Volunteer
Wang Xiang,
Graduate student alumni
Jialin Xiao, BSc,
Graduate student alumni
Jennifer Zeng