University of Florida
Zachary Sorrentino
Zachary Sorrentino, MD, PhD Physician–Scientist | Neurosurgery Resident | Leadership Grant Recipient (2020) | KTCT Research Grant Recipient (2025), University of Florida FIND ME ON Biography Zachary Sorrentino’s path into neuroscience was shaped as much by lived experience as by academic ambition. Raised in South Florida by two emergency room physicians, he grew up with…
Read MorePhilip Mackie
Philip Mackie, PHD Philip Mackie earned the Toffler Scholar Award in 2023 at the University of Florida Biography Philip Mackie, a native of the Tampa-Clearwater area of Florida, was raised by parents who worked as physical therapists. His early exposure to healthcare sparked an interest in the young Mackie. Initially torn between medicine and engineering,…
Read MoreUF neuroscientists discover biomarker with potential to aid Parkinson’s diagnosis
University of Florida neuroscientists have developed a new assay, or test, to detect minute amounts of a protein called tyrosine hydroxylase in blood immune cells of Parkinson’s disease patients, a key finding to aid in the development of a blood test to help diagnose and guide treatment for the neurodegenerative disorder. The findings were published…
Read MoreUF neuroscience students lead creation of new mouse model for Alzheimer’s research
A research team led by University of Florida neuroscience graduate students has devised a new mouse model to study the protein tau, which can abnormally accumulate inside neurons and is associated with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. The development was reported May 12 in Communications Biology, a Nature Portfolio journal. The new rodent model, which…
Read MoreAdithya Gopinath
Adithya Gopinath, PHD Adithya Gopinath earned the Toffler Scholar Award in 2025 and 2020 at the University of Florida. FIND ME ON Biography Adithya was born in California and lived all over the country throughout his childhood. His father, a computer engineer, worked for different companies, which meant frequent moves for the family. From a…
Read MoreSruti Rayaprolu
Sruti Rayaprolu, PHD Sruti Rayaprolu earned the Toffler Scholar Leadership Award in 2018 at the University of Florida FIND ME ON Biography Dr. Sruti Rayaprolu was born in India and moved with her family to the United States when she was 9 years old. Being an immigrant was challenging, but by the time she entered…
Read MoreLatoya Allen
Latoya Allen, PHD Latoya Allen earned the Toffler Scholar Leadership Award in 2018 at the University of Florida. FIND ME ON Biography Dr. Latoya Allen was raised in Madison, Wisconsin. After graduating high school, she attended college at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, a satellite school of the University of Wisconsin. The small, liberal arts school…
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