Greg D. Field, Ph.D.

Associate Professor
Department of Ophthalmology
Stein Eye Institute
University of California, Los Angeles
[email protected]

I have a long-standing interest in how the retina converts light into electrical signals that are sent to the rest of the brain. I want to understand how this process contributes to vision and how we can leverage an understanding of retinal function to treat blindness. 

Marija Rudzite

Ph.D. Student

Project titles:
- Determining the signals sent by retinal ganglion cells to superior colliculus
- Determining how GABA inhibition shapes information processing in the retina

I'm a “bi-coastal” graduate student at Duke Neurobiology Ph.D. program working with the Sommer Lab to understand what visual signals the retina sends to different brain regions. I'm also interested in how the synaptic organization of retinal circuits relates to mathematical descriptions of neural code and visual processing. As a training retinal physiologist, I spend most of my time in the dark, but when I do see the light, I love to be outside hiking, gardening, or biking.

Learn more: Research projects

Mishek Thapa

Staff Research Associate & UCLA Medical Student

Project title:
- The Neurobiology of Retinal Degeneration

My goal is to use basic science experiments and novel analysis tools to gain insight for vision restoration. Using physiology experiments that measure retinal signaling, I determine which cells and circuits exhibit stability during disease and, as a result, could serve as therapeutic targets. Using transcriptomic analysis, I determine which molecules and molecular networks change during remodeling caused by degeneration, and I use this information to develop more effective therapies. 

Sarah Proctor

Staff Research Associate

Project title:
- Cricket Hunting (Arena and Analysis)

I studied biomedical engineering and neuroscience as an undergraduate and then worked in the medical device industry for three years. Motivated by persistent gaps between current biomedical technology and unmet patient needs, I decided to return to the research environment to work toward closing those gaps. I intend to pursue a Ph.D. in Neural Engineering.

Bryant Cruz

Staff Research Associate

A driven science professional with a passion for understanding how our eyes and neural network work as one to explain what we see. 

Nilou Ghazavi

Ph.D. Student

Anthony Tarakji

Staff Research Associate

Alex Gallego, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Fellow

Rohan Joshi

Undergraduate

Major: Neuroscience

Fun Fact: I’m deep water SCUBA certified and have dove over 25 times

Interest in the lab: Using open-source software to generate 3D models of cricket hunting behaviors and quantify retinal degeneration of mice

Ziane Djenidi

Undergraduate

Major: Neuroscience

Fun Fact: My longest-running hobby is filmmaking which I have been doing since I was in 3rd grade. However, I only got my first real camera last year.

Interests in the lab: I am interested in learning about the mechanism that allows our eyes to adjust to different light situations.

Patience Okani

Undergraduate

Major: Physiological Science major

Hello! My name is Patience Okani and I am a 3rd year Physiological Science major!

Interests in the lab: I am really excited to learn more about visual processing, as well as the components of the nervous system that help translate the world to what we see in person.