https://www.levitzlab.com/gipfel daily 0.75 2017-09-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1505355176413-QGSI5O85JJGINYB0BVXF/Website_researchpage.jpg Research https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1505355176413-QGSI5O85JJGINYB0BVXF/Website_researchpage.jpg Research https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1505355322773-5L6XXS3NU0DII1UV725G/Website_researchpage.jpg Research https://www.levitzlab.com/nacht daily 0.75 2016-03-01 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/56d4a125e707eb7a02e4055f/1456783943006-7TCJ0ZZ2NS58BMQHHRKC/83.jpg News https://www.levitzlab.com/maritime daily 0.75 2016-02-29 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/56d4a125e707eb7a02e4055f/1456779348146-A78EFLQ51J2PNH2KVHXZ/21.jpg Open Positions https://www.levitzlab.com/weite daily 0.75 2016-02-29 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/56d4a125e707eb7a02e4055f/1456776979355-YQ9YQHLQLW6K5VINE0XL/1.jpg People https://www.levitzlab.com/schwane daily 0.75 2016-02-29 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/56d4a125e707eb7a02e4055f/1456861631707-Q984I9AX2NYXST1ORUVB/3.jpg Publications https://www.levitzlab.com/projects daily 1.0 2017-09-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1505352785461-ROKGI1NZR2XUC9XO612A/Website_FrontPage_2.jpg Intro https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1505353313774-WRG23J3SLI9VVNNBZC2L/Website_FrontPage_5.jpg Intro https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1505354474185-E8UENT33J1X3E9RN6H5C/Website_FrontPage_1.jpg Intro https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1505354626865-MUBS92F61S6L6F3RN9RB/Website_FrontPage_3.jpg Intro https://www.levitzlab.com/nebel daily 0.75 2016-02-29 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/56d4a125e707eb7a02e4055f/1456780247407-NJTB6A573YWWOW9HZ9LT/13.jpg Resources https://www.levitzlab.com/news daily 0.75 2023-12-06 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2023/12/6/new-paper-out-in-science-advances monthly 0.5 2023-12-06 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2023/9/14/congratulations-alberto monthly 0.5 2023-09-14 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2023/9/5/j21qdzjt49jaemkd5nbp7x48hxdcz5 monthly 0.5 2023-09-05 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2023/9/5/new-papers-on-biorxiv monthly 0.5 2023-09-05 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2022/11/10/welcome-new-lab-members monthly 0.5 2023-09-05 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2020/8/30/welcome-new-lab-members monthly 0.5 2021-02-09 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2020/8/30/new-publication-on-developing-cell-impermeable-snap-tag-substrates monthly 0.5 2020-08-30 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1598821380022-LPH92O6KS2B4V60DEWWU/d0sc02794d-f2_hi-res.gif News - New publication on developing cell-impermeable SNAP-tag substrates https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2020/6/23/graduate-student-vanessa-gutzeit-awarded-nih-nrsa-f31-fellowship monthly 0.5 2020-08-30 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1598821121072-W6G3I2M8H14QMSWTXKR5/Screen+Shot+2020-08-30+at+4.58.29+PM.png News - Graduate student Vanessa Gutzeit awarded NIH NRSA F31 Fellowship https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2020/6/23/congrats-to-postdoc-joon-lee-and-others-on-new-publication-on-mglur-dimerization-in-cell-reports monthly 0.5 2020-06-23 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1592955834897-5P02JKBMN21NFSG0FHNA/Screen+Shot+2020-06-23+at+7.43.44+PM.png News - Congrats to postdoc Joon Lee and others on new publication on mGluR dimerization in Cell Reports. https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2020/4/9/lab-publishes-new-study-on-a-new-family-of-branched-photoswitchable-ligands monthly 0.5 2020-04-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1586446340613-LNAWIYCLIWW2FFBH1Z0L/IMG_4370.jpg News - Lab publishes study on a new family of Branched Photoswitchable Ligands https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1586446273151-PCGA3WHKB17W1IFDIEXE/1-s2.0-S0896627319309316-gr1.jpg News - Lab publishes study on a new family of Branched Photoswitchable Ligands https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2020/4/9/welcome-postdoc-hermany-munguba monthly 0.5 2020-04-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1586445593582-JLE2D8GXRBH2SXYDS4VL/FullSizeRender.jpeg News - Welcome postdoc Hermany Munguba! https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2020/4/9/welcome-postdoc-guoqing-xiang monthly 0.5 2020-04-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1586445656375-WF4Q5VNCRT2UZ85V6SLV/photo%2Bfor%2Blevitz%2Bwebsite.jpg News - Welcome postdoc Guoqing Xiang! https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2020/4/9/congrats-georgia-krikorian-for-completing-the-gateways-summer-undergraduate-program monthly 0.5 2020-04-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1586445983920-NFHVN4SLA0FJ1N5V7J81/EJhAVTjU4AEIt9Z.jpg News - Congrats Georgia Krikorian for completing the Gateways Summer Undergraduate Program https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2020/4/9/lab-publishes-new-study-in-elife-on-conformational-dynamics-of-mglur2 monthly 0.5 2020-04-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1586444826091-ASS0M7I9F0B7C07DNU9D/lax_45116_elife-45116-fig3-v2.tif.jpg News - Lab publishes new study in eLife on conformational dynamics of mGluR2. An inter-TMD FRET assay reveals LBD-independent reorientation in response to positive allosteric modulators. https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2020/4/9/lab-publishes-book-chapter-protocol-on-using-portls monthly 0.5 2020-04-09 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1586445266960-E5U0BEPBUKYFQ5B3ELAX/454914_1_En_6_Fig1_HTML.png News - Lab publishes book chapter protocol on using PORTLs Principle of PORTL-mediated Optical Control of Class C GPCRs. https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2020/4/9/nohely-passes-ace-exam monthly 0.5 2020-04-09 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/lab-publishes-in-acs-chemical-biology monthly 0.5 2018-09-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1536606735544-H8B2Z41OOQBQ4VWBWOTK/cb-2018-00628c_0005.jpeg News - Lab publishes in ACS Chemical Biology https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/jordana-attends-protein-society-conference monthly 0.5 2018-09-10 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/dr-levitz-publishes-neuron-review monthly 0.5 2018-09-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1536606518062-1SEYSXDQQQHRI8NX7HOD/gr1_lrg.jpg News - Dr. Levitz publishes review in Neuron https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/11/annual-lab-outing monthly 0.5 2018-09-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1536690512274-VLG7VGIN2GOIVUXVJM9M/IMG_5617.jpg News - Annual Lab Outing The lab with our summer undergrads and baby Izzy. https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/jordana-passes-admission-to-candidacy-exam monthly 0.5 2018-09-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1536690036988-ESMPHHR38YOZZ7WNQR93/35296105_10156503951044540_2896250216111931392_n.jpg News - Jordana passes Admission to Candidacy Exam! https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/welcome-graduate-student-nohely-abreu monthly 0.5 2018-09-10 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/vanessa-passes-admission-to-candidacy-exam monthly 0.5 2018-09-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1536690776972-CGEBZFKUJ6QMFXXX5Q4C/IMG_3965.jpg News - Vanessa passes Admission to Candidacy Exam! https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/welcome-postdoctoral-fellow-joon-lee monthly 0.5 2018-09-10 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/amanda-passes-admission-to-candidacy-exam monthly 0.5 2018-09-11 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1536690187226-NE7SQ5YQQ2NN2LVYS7TC/30531361_10156372462028619_2477212436252327936_o.jpg News - Amanda passes Admission to Candidacy Exam! https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/vanessa-wins-2nd-place-for-neuroscience-program-poster-competition monthly 0.5 2018-09-10 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/welcome-graduate-student-jordana-thibado monthly 0.5 2018-09-10 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/dr-levitz-receives-nih-r35-grant monthly 0.5 2018-09-10 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/welcome-graduate-student-vanessa-gutzeit monthly 0.5 2018-09-10 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/welcome-graduate-student-amanda-acosta-ruiz monthly 0.5 2018-09-10 https://www.levitzlab.com/news/2018/9/10/92016-welcome monthly 0.5 2018-09-10 https://www.levitzlab.com/people daily 0.75 2026-03-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1535945358838-LCRHF05MZY49K6AMT6RG/JoshLevitz_headshot.JPG People - Josh Levitz Associate Professor Josh received a B.S. in Biology and a B.S. in Physics from American University in 2009. While an undergraduate he worked in the lab of Miguel Holmgren at the National Institutes of Health. As a PhD student and postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Ehud Isacoff at UC Berkeley, Josh developed and applied new optical approaches to study the activation mechanisms and neurophysiology of glutamate receptors and ion channels. He joined the department of biochemistry at Weill Cornell in September 2016. contact: jtl2003@med.cornell.edu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/07ea319f-040e-4712-bd94-bc920b2e66ef/IMG_1588.JPG People - Dagan Marx Postdoctoral Fellow Dagan received a B.S. in both Biochemistry and Environmental Science from the University of Iowa in 2014. As an undergraduate, he worked in the lab of Dr. Madeline Shea studying the regulation of voltage-gated sodium channels by calmodulin. He then moved to Baltimore to do his PhD with Dr. Karen Fleming at Johns Hopkins University where he studied both how chaperone proteins solubilize unfolded membrane proteins, and membrane protein folding and stability. Dagan joined the Levitz and Eliezer labs at WCM in 2021 and is interested in understanding how GPCR function is regulated by macromolecular interactions. Contact: dcm4002@med.cornell.edu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/ba7d891d-5138-4494-919d-25c3d6e59ab5/alberto.jpeg People - Alberto J. Gonzalez-Hernandez Postdoctoral Fellow Alberto received a B.S. in Biology and a MSc in Biomedicine with honors at the University of La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain. Interested in neuroscience since he was an undergraduate student, he received a grant from the Spanish National Research Council to do a short internship in the lab of Dr. Elisa Martí (IBMB-CSIC, Barcelona). There, he learned about the cell fate determination of the neural tube differentiation. Afterwards, he did his B.S. project at the Prof. Diego Alvarez de la Rosa lab, studying the mineralocorticoid dependent expression of the epithelial sodium channel. He did his PhD in the Prof. Teresa Giraldez lab with a fellowship from the Ministry of Education in Spain. He focused on the structure-function of a calcium activated potassium channel and its interaction with different neuronal calcium sources combining patch-clamp electrophysiology with high-resolution imaging techniques. He obtained his PhD degree, cum laude, in October 2021. He joined the Levitz lab in March 2022 where he will study the GPCR synaptic mechanisms from a molecular and biophysical perspective Contact: ajg4003@med.cornell.edu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/7904faed-c63e-4551-947f-e9a7794872c5/IMG-ipsit.jpg People - Ipsit Srivastava Postdoctoral Fellow Ipsit received his PhD from Karolinska Instituet, Stockholm, Sweden where he studied the interaction of astrocytes and synapses in health and disease. With the motivation to understand specific brain circuits he joined the Levitz lab, where he will dissect the role of mGluRs in brain circuits involved in anxiety and stress using a combination of techniques such as electrophysiology, optogenetics and photo-pharmacology. Contact: ips4002@med.cornell.edu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/04aba803-ba0b-497e-ac33-23834eca2244/20230802_164854+-+Copy+%284%29.jpg People - Luca Posa Postdoctoral Fellow Luca received his B.Sc in Biology and, later, his Pharm.D, both from the University of Bologna in Italy. As a pharmacy graduate student, he researched the cellular and molecular determinants of central opioid tolerance in collaboration with the University of Paris Descartes in France. Subsequently, he relocated to Canada, where he pursued his Ph.D in Psychiatry at McGill University, focusing on understanding the interaction between the melatoninergic and opioid systems in the context of pain and addiction. Following his doctoral studies, Luca joined the University of Maryland, Baltimore, where he delved into investigating the role of monoamines in central pain modulation. Later, he transitioned to Boston University, where he focused on studying the crosstalk between GPCRs and RTKs in peripheral tolerance. In 2023, Luca joined the Levitz lab, where he is dedicated to exploring the role of GPCRs in modulating the brain circuits underlying neuropsychiatric disorders, including chronic pain and its associated emotional states. Contact: lup4008@med.cornell.edu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/71218ab7-35ac-4333-8af9-c60f52aeb8e1/CSHeadshots_031523_Gallo_009.jpg People - Pamela Gallo Postdoctoral fellow Dr. Pamela Gallo is a postdoc in the Levitz lab who studies receptor dimerization dynamics and protein structure of synaptic membrane proteins using SiMPull and cryoEM, respectively. Pam began her career as a scientist at Rowan University where she obtained her B.S. in Translational Biomedical Sciences. While at Rowan, Pam studied protein thermodynamics and investigated the structural/functional relationship of prolyl hydroxylase domain and antifreeze proteins using biochemical assays and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) under the supervision of Dr. Nathaniel Nucci. Pam graduated Magna Cum Laude and received the Departmental Award of Distinction from the Cellular and Molecular Biosciences Department. She continued her scientific career by pursuing her PhD at University of Pennsylvania where she investigated the structure of pharmacologically modulated TRP channels in Dr. Vera Moiseenkova-Bell’s lab using cryoEM. Later, she investigated the proximal proteome of TRPV2 by leveraging APEX-MS and uncovered a functional relationship between the channel and cell adhesion molecules in the context of neurite outgrowth. contact: pag4018@med.cornell.edu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/99bb15e0-cf8c-4545-aa4a-b6a0451b3c1f/Blanco%2C+Francisco.198668.GSBS.jpg People - Francisco Blanco Postdoctoral fellow Francisco received a B.S. in Biochemical and Biophysical Sciences from the University of Houston in 2013. As an undergraduate student, Francisco discovered his passion for neuroscience while working in the lab of Dr. Joydip Das, where he studied the regulation of Munc13 proteins and their roles in presynaptic function. He earned his Ph.D. in Integrative Molecular and Biomedical Sciences from Baylor College of Medicine in 2025. As a graduate student in the lab of Dr. Kimberley Tolias, Francisco investigated the role of actin cytoskeleton regulators in neuronal development, plasticity, and memory functions. For his dissertation research, he utilized primary neuronal cultures, confocal microscopy, and behavioral assays to elucidate the role of the Rac1 guanine nucleotide exchange factor Tiam1 in hippocampal synaptic plasticity. In March 2025, Francisco joined the Levitz lab at Weill Cornell College of Medicine for his postdoctoral training. His current research aims to elucidate how neuromodulatory G protein-coupled receptor signaling influences presynaptic structural plasticity in the prefrontal cortex in health and disease. contact: fab4014@med.cornell.edu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/88e42b53-5595-4cf6-95d5-1348492d0eab/IMG_2308.jpg People - Viet Chi Bao Nguyen Postdoctoral fellow Bao earned a B.S in Biochemistry from Plymouth State University in 2020. At Plymouth State, he conducted research in the Beebe River lab co-led by Dr. Bridgid O’Donnell and Dr. Amy Villamagna where he documented the natural environmental context of inducible HSP70 expression in wild brook trout. He then moved to Amherst, MA for his PhD training with Dr. Margaret Stratton in the MCB program at UMass, where he identified the specific regulation of CaMKII driven by an intrinsically disordered region. Bao joined the Levitz lab at WCM in 2026, where he will focus on the biophysical and structural basics underlying glutamate receptor regulations and functions. contact: vin4009@med.cornell.edu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/7edb52fb-1ead-46e7-9941-40144d283b93/IMG_0991.jpeg People - Alexander Donatelle PhD student Alex grew up in Massachusetts and graduated magna cum laude from New York University with a B.A. in Biology. He then worked as a research associate in the lab of Dr. Natalia De Marco where he characterized GABAergic mechanisms of postnatal network activity pattern development. Alex is a member of the Weill Cornell Neuroscience Graduate Program and joined the Levitz and Liston labs in 2024. He is interested in the function of mPFC microcircuit elements in executing neuromodulation, regulating plasticity, and sculpting activity patterns to inform representations of experience. Contact: ajd4002@med.cornell.edu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/47075459-5729-4b5a-8663-793a0c9e7f37/Anna+Lab+Website+Photo.jpg People - Anna Tuttman PhD student Anna graduated summa cum laude from the University at Albany in 2020 with a B.A. in Biology and Psychology. After completing her degree, she worked as a Research Associate in Dr. Attila Losonczy's lab at Columbia University, where she investigated subtype-specific interneuron contributions to microcircuit dysfunction in the CA1 region during learning in a mouse model of the 22q11.2 deletion syndrome. Currently, Anna is a member of the Neuroscience Graduate Program at Weill Cornell, and officially joined the Levitz lab in 2024. She is interested in how neuromodulation influences synaptic plasticity within cortico-amygdalar circuits and drives behavioral adaptations in response to stress. Contact: alt4018@med.cornell.edu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/932bae19-62c0-4cde-9d91-3cbd98a50aa4/IMG_9362+copy.jpg People - Iram Arefin PhD student Iram graduated from the University of Chicago in 2022 and earned a B.A in Neuroscience and B.S's in Chemistry, and Biochemistry. During his time at the University of Chicago, he worked in the laboratory of Douglas Bishop. There, he focused on the molecular mechanisms of meiotic homologous recombination -- specifically detecting in vivo interactions between key recombination proteins using Yeast Two-Hybrid assays, as well as characterizing recombination hotspot activity using classical genetic techniques. Iram joined the Levitz lab at WCM in 2022 and is interested in studying the circuit basis of antidepressants. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/a33362db-6784-4a17-adae-d8bfb261b575/IMG_0955+5.png People - Ashna Singh PhD student Ashna received a B.S. in Behavioral Neuroscience from Northeastern University in Boston, MA, in 2020. After graduating from college, Ashna worked as a research technician in the laboratory of Dr. Conor Liston, where she investigated how the prefrontal cortex and amygdala regulate defensive behaviors and encode internal states. Ashna joined the Weill Cornell Neuroscience Graduate Program in 2023 and is now co-mentored by the Levitz and Liston labs. She is interested in how neuromodulatory signaling in neurons and astrocytes shapes prefrontal cortical microcircuits to regulate stress-induced changes in behavior. Contact: asi4001@med.cornell.edu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/cfa36098-ab3f-43ab-a629-092a184f30e3/_DSC2502.jpg People - Kevin Huynh Technician Kevin graduated from Rice University in 2022 with a B.S. in BioSciences, concentrating in Molecular and Cell Biology. As an undergraduate, he worked in the laboratories of Theodore G. Wensel and Zhao Wang at the Baylor College of Medicine to investigate the structure of TRPV2 cation channels using cryo-electron microscopy. Kevin joined the Levitz lab at WCM in 2023 and is interested in the structure-function relationship of GPCRs and the molecular mechanisms of their desensitization. Contact: keh4009@med.cornell.edu https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/03666cf0-147e-4e25-9d73-3c6dcade3416/img_0150.jpg People - Make it stand out WCM Photo Shoot https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/322dcec7-a2ca-4ed6-9bdd-4f66b24391f4/IMG_3217.jpeg People - Make it stand out October 2022 - Lab BBQ and Pumpkin Carving Contest https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/a92c6233-6d33-4477-b1e0-99ed3670248c/IMG_4784.jpg People - Make it stand out August 2023 - Alexa and Aiden at the high school Catalyst summer poster session! https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/91b617c8-704b-4cb9-8042-3bb0d3f87704/IMG_0478.jpg People - Make it stand out July 2025 - Simon and Levitz labs BBQ at Roosevelt Island. https://www.levitzlab.com/open-positions daily 0.75 2026-03-20 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1505351511387-3V8XLVUTCWCYLER4164P/central-park.jpg Open Positions https://www.levitzlab.com/publications daily 0.75 2026-03-20 https://www.levitzlab.com/research daily 0.75 2017-09-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/58713c039f745668dc6c10d2/1505355511239-SGR85K70K9ACD0DQZUH8/Website_researchpage.jpg Research