This week’s student spotlight featured Sofia Guerrero, a prominent member of Duke University’s senior class of 2024. With an impressive record in research and several awards to her name, Guerrero exemplifies academic excellence and dedication.
Originally from Seattle, Washington, Guerrero began her journey at Duke University in 2020 with a clear direction in mind. Unlike many freshmen, she arrived with a clear interest in understanding how alterations in cell physiology result in disease. This passion led her to join Dr. Gustavo Silva’s lab during the fall of her freshman year. Through a combination of hands-on research in the lab and coursework in neuroscience, Guerrero’s curiosity shifted towards understanding the physiology of brain cells. She decided to pursue a major in Neuroscience with a minor Computer Science. While her primary interest lies in cellular and molecular neurobiology, she valued the opportunity to explore the breadth of the field through the various diverse classes offered in the Neuroscience major
In her Neuroscience 101 class, Guerrero discovered microglia, known as the resident immune cells of the brain. Fascinated by these cells, she joined Dr. Lindsay De Biase’s lab as a UCLA Amgen Scholar in the summer of 2022. Here, she developed a microglial phagocytosis assay to observe how microglia cells consume pathogens, dead cells, and waste in brain tissue. Although microglia are crucial for brain health, we don't fully understand how their eating process works or how it may differ in various parts of the brain. Recognizing the potential of immune cell pathways in treating neurodegeneration, Guerrero was inspired to pursue a career in neuroscience research and contribute new insights to the field.
Back at Duke, under the faculty mentorship of Gustavo Silva, Guerrero worked to better characterize Rad6’s role in cell physiology and garner insight into the underlying causes associated with Nascimento intellectual disability. Thanks to the Biological Science Undergraduate Research Fellowship, she was able to continue working at the Silva Lab during the summer of 2021.[SG1] In 2023, Guerrero was named a Goldwater scholar by the Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation Program. The Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship is a federally endowed award that encourages students to pursue careers in the fields of mathematics, the natural sciences and engineering.
The Silva Lab investigates how ubiquitin controls cellular response to oxidative stress. Ubiquitin is a small and highly conserved protein that modifies other proteins, likely regulating a wide variety of cellular processes, including protein synthesis and degradation. They employ a unique combination of proteomics cellular and molecular biology, protein biochemistry, and systems biology to dissect ubiquitin pathways relevant to aging and stress related diseases. Her work at the Silva lab led Guerrero to write a thesis which focuses on understanding the role of the gene ubiquitin conjugase Rad6 in yeast energy metabolism. When Rad6 doesn't work properly in humans, it can cause a condition called Nascimento intellectual disability, which affects motor skills. By understanding how Rad6 affects cell energy use, one can learn more about how it impacts brain tissue in patients with Nascimento syndrome. She successfully defended her senior thesis in May 2024 and is part of the GwD cohort of 2024.
Guerrero will be attending Stanford University this fall to pursue her PhD degree. She plans to study the role of the immune system in neurodegenerative diseases and aging and is looking forward to continuing her passion for outreach in the Latinx community. Guerrero passionate about helping the Latinx community to overcome the language barrier in the United States. She worked as a tutor for Duke GANO for the large part of her time here at Duke. As a tutor, she provided English lessons to native Spanish speakers in Durham to help them become more confident in their ability to speak and understand English. Guerrero was also part of the Bass Connections project Celebra Mi Herencia, which aims to develop and implement a Spanish reading program for Latinx 4th graders to encourage Spanish heritage language retention, reading motivation, and cultural pride.
Reflecting on her times at Duke, Guerrero emphasized the importance of networking and establishing relationships early during one’s time at Duke. She encouraged students to utilize Duke’s Alumni Network as reaching out to alumni can provide great insights into seeing what a particular career path looks like. There are so many resources and amazing opportunities at Duke waiting to be discovered. Be active, seek out and take advantage of the resources by investing time, forming meaningful relationship and learning from the people you admire.
Department of Psychology & Neuroscience
