STEM Project Subpage

Lay Description

My project explores how changes in brain chemical signaling may influence behaviors associated with suicide risk. Specifically, I focus on serotonin, a key chemical messenger in the brain that plays an important role in mood and emotional regulation. By using medications that either decrease or increase serotonin signaling, I can create depression-like behavioral changes—or reverse those changes—in a small model organism called *C. elegans*. Although *C. elegans* is a microscopic worm, it shares many fundamental biological pathways with humans, including serotonin signaling. By observing how altering these signals affects behavior, my research helps us better understand the biological mechanisms that may contribute to inherited vulnerability to depression and suicide-related behaviors.