Curriculum Vitae

Education

Research Experience

• Graduate Student Researcher

  Fall 2024 – Present
  Emory University — Alvarez Lab · Supervisor: Dr. Francisco J. Alvarez
  • Established decerebrate mouse preparation to study spinal reflex circuitry in vivo
  • Investigating inhibitory interneuron regulation of motor output using intersectional mouse lines to selectively ablate Renshaw cells and Foxp2-V1 interneurons
  • Designed muscle vibration paradigm to probe reciprocal inhibition and polysynaptic facilitation
  • Developed electrophysiological assays (sciatic nerve stimulation + multi-muscle EMG) for M-responses and H-reflex amplitudes
  • Quantitative EMG analysis in Python: stimulus-response curves, normalized H-max
• Graduate Student Researcher (Rotation)

  Spring 2024
  Emory University — Alvarez Lab · Supervisor: Dr. Francisco J. Alvarez
  • Developed electrophysiological preparation for multi-muscle EMG with sciatic nerve stimulation in mice to record M-responses and H-reflexes in ankle flexor/extensor muscles
  • Created custom Python scripts for EMG data analysis and stimulus-response curves
  • Performed 3D reconstructions of filled Renshaw cells; established EMG recording preparations
• Graduate Student Researcher (Rotation)

  Winter 2023
  Emory University — Emmanuel Lab · Supervisor: Dr. Alan Emmanuel
  • Investigated temporal patterns and synchrony of Aβ low-threshold mechanoreceptor activity propagating to somatosensory cortex using optogenetics (CatCh) and Neuropixels recordings
  • Work resulted in co-authored preprint (Liu et al. 2026, bioRxiv)
• Graduate Student Researcher (Rotation)

  Fall 2023
  Emory University — Andersen Lab · Supervisor: Dr. Jimena Andersen
  • Generated human DRG organoids and prepared snRNA-seq libraries
  • Analyzed scRNA-seq data from cortex–spinal cord–muscle assembloids
• Lead Research Specialist

  2020 – 2023
  Emory University — Alvarez Lab · Supervisor: Dr. Francisco J. Alvarez
  • Molecular and anatomical characterization of spinal V1 interneuron subpopulations (IHC, viral tracing AAV/RABV/PRV, confocal microscopy, western blotting)
  • Managed transgenic mouse colony with 50+ active breeders for multi-mutation experimental lines
  • Trained and mentored undergraduate students; projects contributed to conference presentations and a publication
  • Performed aseptic surgeries (neonatal muscle injections for viral tracing)
  • Data analysis: MATLAB, Python, ImageJ, Neurolucida360
• Undergraduate Research Assistant

  Spring 2018 – 2020
  Emory University — Vega Lab · Supervisor: Dr. Nic Vega
  • Investigated phage–bacteria population dynamics; completed honors thesis on “spiteful weapon” dynamics
• Undergraduate Research Intern

  Summer 2017
  Greenwood Genetic Center — Boccuto Lab · Supervisor: Dr. Luigi Boccuto
  • Analyzed SHANK3 deletions in patient DNA; assisted with cell culturing for autism diagnostic assays

Skills

Awards & Honors

Publications

Synchrony within Aβ mechanoreceptor subtypes governs signal propagation to primary somatosensory cortex

Wanyi Liu, Andrew E. Worthy, Alan J. Emanuel (2026). Synchrony within Aβ mechanoreceptor subtypes governs signal propagation to primary somatosensory cortex. bioRxiv. https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.01.16.700009

Spinal V1 inhibitory interneuron clades differ in birthdate, projections to motoneurons, and heterogeneity

Andrew E Worthy, Joanna T Anderson, Alicia R Lane, Laura J Gomez-Perez, Anthony A Wang, Ronald W Griffith, Andre F Rivard, Jay B Bikoff, Francisco J Alvarez (2024) Spinal V1 inhibitory interneuron clades differ in birthdate, projections to motoneurons, and heterogeneity eLife 13:RP95172. https://doi.org/10.7554/eLife.95172.3

Mucoidy, a general mechanism for maintaining lytic phage in populations of bacteria

Waqas Chaudhry, Esther Lee, Andrew Worthy, Zoe Weiss, Marcin Grabowicz, Nicole Vega, Bruce Levin, Mucoidy, a general mechanism for maintaining lytic phage in populations of bacteria, FEMS Microbiology Ecology, Volume 96, Issue 10, October 2020, fiaa162, https://doi.org/10.1093/femsec/fiaa162

Spiteful Weapons and the Environmental Dependence of Phage

Worthy, A. (2020) Spiteful Weapons and the Environmental Dependence of Phage. Honors Thesis. Emory University. Available at: https://etd.library.emory.edu/concern/etds/bv73c164v?locale=en.

Talks & Presentations

Renshaw Cell Modulation of Reciprocal Inhibition and Motor Output

January 29, 2026

Talk at SOM: Cell Biology Research in Progress, Atlanta, GA, USA

Renshaw Cell Ablation Increases Monosynaptic H-Reflex Amplitude in Decerebrate Mice

June 01, 2025

Poster at Motor Control: Spinal Circuits and Beyond, USA

V1 Interneurons Expressing Foxp2 Are a Highly Heterogeneous Clade

November 13, 2022

Poster at Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting (SfN 2022), San Diego, CA, USA

V1 Interneurons Expressing Foxp2 are a Highly Heterogeneous Clade

November 09, 2022

Talk at The Seminars in Integrative Neuroscience (SIN), Emory Cell Biology, Atlanta, GA, USA

Teaching

NBB-301: Introduction to Neurobiology

Service & Leadership