Neda Heshami

Graduate student - PhD

BRAIN CREATE

Contact information

Biography

About me
I was born and raised in Iran. I hold a Bachelor of Science degree in Applied Chemistry from Iran. Shortly after, I pursued my interest in Biochemistry by attending Hamadan University of Medical Sciences and earning a Master of Science degree in Clinical Biochemistry. My interest in neuroscience drove me to do research for my master’s thesis at the intersection of neurophysiology and biochemistry. Then I decided to pursue my education and research, as a Neuroscience PhD student, which led me to join Dr. Sarah McFarlane’s team at the University of Calgary.

My research
I am doing my PhD under the supervision of Dr. McFarlane and studying neurodevelopmental processes in Xenopus laevis as an experimentally accessible animal model to study the basic underlying mechanisms of perception of light, how melatonin is regulated, and how melatonin impacts neurogenesis. My project will add to our understanding of pineal gland development and will assess the roles of melatonin in brain development.

BRAIN CREATE program aspirations
I’m hopeful that the BRAIN CREATE program will help me to collaborate with another research group to gain deeper insights into new skills that be able to apply to my project. Also, I will investigate a variety of potential options, both academic-based and industry-based opportunities.

Commercialization
I will identify the main opsin regulating Melatonin secretion and we know Melatonin is required for the development of larval Pineal Complex and brain neural circuits. My work will provide novel insights into the developmental emergence of the mechanisms that regulate melatonin secretion and brain development.

 

Publications

  1. Heshami N, Mohammadali S, Komaki A, Tayebinia H, Karimi J, Abbasi Oshaghi E, Hashemnia M, Khodadadi I (2021). Favorable effects of Dill tablet and Ocimum Basilicum L. extract on learning and memory and hippocampal fatty acid composition in hypercholesterolemic rats
  2. Mohammadali S, Heshami N, Komaki A, Tayebinia H, Karimi J, Abbasi Oshaghi E, Hashemnia M, Khodadadi I (2020). Dill tablet and Ocimum basilicum aqueous extract: Promising therapeutic agents for improving cognitive deficit in hypercholesterolemic rats.
  3. Faraji N, Ganji A, Heshami N, Salehi I, Haddadian A, Shojaie S, Komaki A (2021). Hypolipidemic effects of Hypericum Scabrum extract on the serum lipid profile and obesity in high-fat diet fed rats. 

Awards

NSERC BRAIN CREATE Graduate Scholarship