Team

Jen Goldschmied, PhD

Jen Goldschmied is a licensed clinical psychologist and Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Chronobiology and Sleep Institute. She received her doctorate in Clinical Science from the University of Michigan in 2016. Her program of research aims to identify the mechanisms by which sleep modulates mood and to determine the functional importance of slow-wave activity in both mood and cognition. She was awarded an NIH Career Development Award (K23) to study the relationship between sleep slow-wave activity, neuroplasticity and mood in depression in 2019. In addition to her research, Jen also engages in clinical work in behavioral sleep medicine, treating patients with sleep disorders and comorbid psychiatric illness.

Santiago Lopez Pereyra

Santiago is a computer science student from the Department of Mathematics, Astronomy, Physics and Computer Science at the National University of Córdoba, Argentina. He has worked under the mentorship of Dr. Goldschmied since 2022 on several research projects, including the study of potential antidepressant effects of slow-wave disruption, the relationship between slow-wave activity and fertility, and the link between sleep’s aperiodic component and cortical excitability. Santiago published research presenting two novel biomarkers of major depressive disorder using a mathematical model of cortical excitability derived from transcranial magnetic stimulation. He has also written EEGToolkit.jl, a comprehensive Julia package for sleep EEG analysis featuring functionalities such as power spectral analysis, empirical mode decomposition, and exponential modelling of slow-wave dissipation, among others. Currently, he is interested in characterizing alterations in the spatio-temporal synchronization of slow-wave activity in major depressive disorder. He will soon relocate to Switzerland, where he plans to pursue a PhD. Outside of the lab, he is a tango musician and enjoys reading philosophy and poetry.

Aysheh Abuarqub

Aysheh is a junior at Loyola University Maryland pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in psychology and minoring in philosophy. At Penn, she works on Dr. Goldschmied’s studies investigating the connections between ketamine, depression, and sleep, and the role of chronic stress and sleep in accelerated aging. At Loyola, Aysheh is involved in research and advocacy work surrounding adolescent sleep and circadian rhythms with a focus on the effects of early school start times, light, and incarceration on sleep. In addition to her work at Penn, Aysheh currently works as the project coordinator for a study investigating sleep, sleep knowledge, and workplace dynamics in juvenile justice staff in Washington DC. She plans on pursuing a PhD in clinical psychology after graduation, with interests in the social determinants of health, and the effects of sleep on cognition, memory, and trauma.

Esha Singh

Esha is a junior at the University of Pennsylvania pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in neuroscience. Throughout her undergraduate career she has been involved in various types of neuroscience research which has strengthened her interest in understanding the factors that influence sleep. Currently she works on clinical studies, one of which examines the effects of ketamine infusions in individuals with treatment-resistant depression and another that investigates whether sleep-related changes can contribute to aging and Alzheimer’s disease in older black adults. She is interested in exploring women’s health and sleep particularly how endocrine disorders and stress are related to slow-wave sleep. After graduation she hopes to attend medical school.

Alex Juhasz

Alex is a sophomore at the University of Pennsylvania in the College of Arts and Sciences, planning to major in neuroscience and psychology. She was involved in neuroscience research at Villanova University in 2024, where she studied temporal perception in fruit flies. As a participant in Penn’s Undergraduate Research Mentoring program, Alex looks forward to interacting with patients as part of Dr. Goldschmied’s study on slow-wave activity and aging. She is especially interested in the biological determinants of human behavior, which she is investigating through lab projects regarding the effect of ketamine on treatment-resistant depression, as well as biomarkers of chronic stress in the blood. Alex hopes to pursue a career in psychiatry or clinical psychology after her undergraduate degree. Outside of the lab, she enjoys reading, crocheting, and exploring new coffee shops

Emma Palermo

Emma is a current senior at the University of Pennsylvania majoring in psychology and minoring in neuroscience and statistics. Alongside working in the Slow-Wave Lab, she has been involved in several research projects focusing on the mechanisms and treatment of anxiety and depression and development of mobile health interventions for emotion regulation. Currently, Emma is conducting her senior honors thesis on the relationship between sleep and emotion regulation under the supervision of Dr. Goldschmied and works as an RA on the SWIP study.

Zachary Zamore, BA

Zachary Zamore is a recent graduate of the University of Pennsylvania (C’21) with a Bachelor of Arts in Biology and minors in Chemistry and Neuroscience. He was a research assistant in the Sleep Neurobiology and Psychopathology (SNaP) Lab from 2020-2021 working under Dr. Goldschmied looking at the use of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) as a biomarker for Major Depressive Disorder. Zach is currently a research assistant in Dr. Sigrid Veasey's Lab at the Perelman School of Medicine investigating the relationship between chronic sleep disruptions and the development of Alzheimer's disease. His research interests are studying the biological mechanisms that result in Major Depressive Disorder and Alzheimer's disease in order to predict future treatment options. Zach plans to begin medical school in the summer of 2022.

Grace Estabrook

Grace is a senior at the University of Pennsylvania graduating in May 2022 pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. She worked under Dr. Goldschmied in investigating the effects of slow wave sleep disruption on mood, cognition, and behavior in people with Major Depressive Disorder. In the future, she hopes to obtain a Masters in Social Work.

Margaux Games

Margaux is a senior at the University of Pennsylvania pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Neuroscience with minors in Music and Chemistry. Throughout her undergraduate career, she has witnessed the consequences of a growing prevalence of mental health problems in a community with a limited number of mental health services. This issue has driven Margaux’s desire to better understand the causation of anxiety disorders, specifically in its relation to sleep. Her interest in research focuses on the intersection between slow wave sleep, anxiety, and cognition. She will be attending medical school beginning in Fall 2022.

Samantha Costello

Sam is a junior at the University of Pennsylvanian pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in cognitive neuroscience and a minor in philosophy. She works under Dr. Goldschmied in examining the relationship between slow-wave sleep and neuroplasticity. Her research interests include neuroplasticity and its effects in development and rehabilitation from brain injury. After graduation she hopes to pursue a PhD in neuroscience.

Emily Overholt, BA

Emily studied psychology and public health at the University of Arizona where she graduated in 2021. She did personality research at U of A as well as sleep and psychopathology research with Dr. Goldschmied at HUP. She now is getting her master’s in clinical social work at Penn. She enjoys taking her dogs to the park and a good book!

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