The Team

Want to get involved?

We are recruiting undergraduate research assistants! Please reach out to lisa.hiura@colorado with a CV and a blurb on your interests.

Assistant Professor

Principal Investigator

Lisa Hiura, PhD

She/her/hers

Welcome! I am a behavioral neuroscientist broadly interested in the development and evolution of social behavior. I completed my undergraduate degree at Reed College, my M.A. and PhD. at Cornell University, and my postdoctoral training at CU Boulder.

I am from Hamamatsu, Japan, and immigrated to the United States as a child.

Beyond work in the lab, I am passionate about forging a path forward for historically excluded individuals in STEM fields. We must be united in our efforts to dismantle the systemic obstacles that bar marginalized groups from participating —and succeeding— in academia.

lisa.hiura@colorado.edu

Our Staff Members

Professional Research Assistant

Oisín Southerland

oiso8169@colorado.edu

They/them/theirs

I am a proud neurodiverse and LGBTQ+ individual who is fascinated with all organisms and how they function. As a graduate of Texas A&M University with a B.S. in Genetics, I hope to use genetics as a tool to better understand the inner workings of animal brains and systems in behavioral neuroscience. Outside of the lab, I keep pet snails, and a tortoiseshell cat named Tortellini. I also love being creative in drawing and playing D&D with my friends.

Graduate Students

Hi I'm Daisy, the new Graduate Student in the Hiura Lab. I'm from Danvers, Massachusetts and completed my B.S. in Neuroscience at the University of Vermont in 2022. I then worked as a Lab Technician at Boston University in Dr. Jerry Chen's lab for two years.
I am excited to begin my PhD career in the Hiura lab. I am interested in seeing how variations in sex hormones like estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone during puberty in prairie voles effect their abilities to form pair bonds later in life, and how these different hormones act in brain circuitry to produce differences in this behavior.
Outside of lab I enjoy playing tabletop roleplaying games with friends, casual video games, and when I have time and motivation, designing and sewing costumes.

PhD Student - Behavioral Neuroscience

Daisy Powers

daisy.powers@colrado.edu

Hi I'm Daisy, the new Graduate Student in the Hiura Lab. I'm from Danvers, Massachusetts and completed my B.S. in Neuroscience at the University of Vermont in 2022. I then worked as a Lab Technician at Boston University in Dr. Jerry Chen's lab for two years.
I am excited to begin my PhD career in the Hiura lab. I am interested in seeing how variations in sex hormones like estrogen, progesterone, and testosterone during puberty in prairie voles effect their abilities to form pair bonds later in life, and how these different hormones act in brain circuitry to produce differences in this behavior.
Outside of lab I enjoy playing tabletop roleplaying games with friends, casual video games, and when I have time and motivation, designing and sewing costumes.

Undergraduate Assistants

Undergraduate Research Assistant

Olesya Larson

olesya.larson@colorado.edu

Hi, I'm Olesya and I am a junior undergraduate from Colorado studying Neuroscience with a Russian studies minor. I am fascinated with the many ways in which the brain can modulate behavior and am looking to pursue a career in research after I graduate. Outside of the lab I compete with the CU gymnastics club and relax by spending my time reading and painting.

Undergraduate Research Assistant

Jainy Dolata

jainy.dolata@colorado.edu

Hi! My name is Jainy and I’m an undergraduate student from Anchorage, AK. I’m currently getting my B.A. in Neuroscience and Psychology at CU, and I’m interested in pursuing a career in the Neuroscience field to contribute to the community. Outside of lab you can find me skiing the slopes, climbing at the local rock gym, or studying at different cafes around Boulder.

Undergraduate Research Assistant

Ankit Mukkamala

Ankit.Mukkamala@colorado.edu

Born and raised in Highlands Ranch, Colorado, I am an incoming sophomore on the pre-medical track studying Molecular, Cellular & Developmental Biology with a minor in Computer Science. I am passionate about science and seek to eventually become a physician who integrates the best practices of research to provide my patients with the latest in evidence based medicine.
Outside school, I am an aquarium hobbyist who likes to keep fish tanks. On top of that, I am an avid horticulturist who likes to grow plants, both in and out of the aquarium.