The Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) has named Washington University in St. Louis doctoral candidate Rubén A. García-Reyes and his adviser, Daniel C. Castro, PhD, to the 2024 cohort of the Gilliam Fellows Program. García-Reyes is working toward a PhD in neuroscience at the School of Medicine, and Castro is an assistant professor of radiology.
The program offers professional development and leadership training to graduate students and their thesis advisers who have demonstrated commitment to advancing equity and inclusion in science. Additionally, the pair will have opportunities to interact with peers, alumni and scientists associated with HHMI. This class of Gilliam fellows represent 50 pairs of students and advisers from 43 institutions in the U.S.
García-Reyes and Castro together will receive $53,000 annually for up to three years. García-Reyes conducts research in Castro’s lab in the Biophotonics Research Center, based in the university’s Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology. The lab investigates how opioids can affect appetite, by studying neural circuits in the brain using innovative imaging techniques such as optogenetics and dual-color fiber photometry.
Castro’s scientific and mentoring talents have inspired García-Reyes. “I will continue giving back to the community by mentoring both high school and undergraduate students in the lab, fomenting a nurturing environment for future scientific leaders,” García-Reyes said.