Graduate Student, Mihic Lab

Natasha entered the Pharmacology & Toxicology program at the University of Texas at Austin in 2013 and joined the Mihic lab in 2014.

Drugs of abuse, such as alcohol and benzodiazepines, act as modulators of ligand-gated ion channels, often in combination with each other and/or in conjunction with endogenous modulators. The Mihic Lab is interested in elucidating the molecular mechanism of allosteric action, and how these allosteric modulators can act in combination at the same receptor. 

Natasha was awarded a National Research Service Award by the National Institute of Health in 2016 to study the molecular mechanism of benzodiazepine action, and to screen for novel peptides capable of modulating the GABA_A receptor.