Principal Investigator
JungA Alexa Woo, PhD
Associate Professor, Department of Pathology
Case Western Reserve University, School of Medicine.
Dr. Alexa Woo, Associate Professor of the Department of Pathology at Case Western Reserve University, completed her Master’s degree at Seoul National University and her Ph.D. at Byrd Alzheimer's Institute, University of South Florida. She became an assistant professor at USF in 2017, moved to CWRU in 2021, and was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure in 2024. Her research focuses on GPCR-beta arrestin signaling in multiple neurodegenerative diseases, including AD, FTD, PD, and ALS. Dr. Woo’s lab also works on the mitochondrial protein CHCHD2 in neurodegenerative diseases. Dr. Woo serves on NIH study sections and extramural grant review panels.
Research Associate/Postdoctoral Fellows
Hyunkyoung Lee, PhD
Research Associate
Dr. Lee received her B.S. degree in genetic engineering at Cheongju University, South Korea. And She has completed her Ph.D. degree from Seoul National University, majoring in Neuroscience. During her post-doctoral studies, she has conducted research in various areas of neuroscience, including neuroinflammation, itch, pain, and animal behavior. In 2024, She moved to CWRU as a Research Associate. Her research focuses on mitochondrial protein CHCHD2 and CHCHD10 in neurodegenerative diseases.
Graduate/Undergraduate Students
Khoi Tran
PhD student
Khoi received his B.A. in Biochemistry from CWRU in 2025. He has previously worked with Dr. Woo as a research assistant since 2022. Khoi joined the Pathology PhD program at CWRU in fall 2025 following his graduation. His research interests are in metabolism and cellular stress responses in the context of aging and neurodegenerative diseases. Outside of work, Khoi enjoys playing soccer, running, cooking, and spending time in nature :)
Grace Xu
Undergraduate student
Grace is an undergraduate research assistant studying Neuroscience. Her research interest is in neurodegenerative disease and neural circuitry.
Alumni
Pamela Espinoza Gonzalez (2019-2021)