Assistant Professor, College of Medicine Ophthalmology
Assistant Professor, College of Medicine Molecular Pharmacology & Physiology

I am a clinician-scientist who takes care of patients with problems and diseases of the cornea but at the same time, I live fascinated by the unlimited wisdom of nature, demonstrated by the perfect construction and assembly of a crystal clear cornea made of infinite collagen fibrils in perfect arrangement to create the only transparent and rigid tissue in the body.

Cornea Fellow

I am the current USF cornea fellow completing a two-year combined research and clinical fellowship. Clinically my interests include corneal infections, corneal transplantation, and corneal wound healing. In the lab I work on several projects involving the regulation of scar tissue formation following mechanical trauma in mice. I also work on a projects involving chemical crosslinking and therapies for corneal ulceration and melt.

Research Associate

I cut(cryosection) and stain tissue with antibodies for immunofluorescence, assist in surgeries on the mice, culture primary and immortalized cell lines for experiments like luciferase assays, cell migration studies, and cell staining for immunofluorescence. My current interest in the lab is to elucidate the role of Collagen V fragments after injury.