Laura Owlett, Ph.D., is a MD/PhD candidate in the Medical Science Training Program and worked in the lab of M. Kerry O’Banion, M.D., Ph.D., professor of Neuroscience and Neurology in the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience and John Olschowka, Ph.D., professor of Neuroscience. She was awarded a competitive National Institute of Health (NIH) F30 grant to support research that is seeking to understand why microglia – the brain’s immune cells – do not effectively clear the plaque associated with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.