Researcher | Research Overview
Within the newly established Rosamund Stone Translational Neuroscience Center, Dr. Makhortova is an Assistant Director of Human Neurons Core. She manages iPSC-based phenotypic assays in human neurons to uncover the mechanisms of neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric disorders in children and establish novel drug targets and therapeutics. She provides her expertise on image acquisition using high-content and high-throughput microscopy and handles HNCs data analysis using algorithm-based scriptwriting. She also provides instructions and training on instrument use and data analysis for BCH and industry researchers, overseeing and training HNC research assistants and users, and participating in RZ-TNC collaborations, fundraising, and marketing efforts.
Researcher | Research Background
Dr. Nina Makhortova received her MD from Russian National Research Medical University in 2003 and a Ph.D. from Moscow State University in 2008. She performed her Masters's and Ph.D. projects as part of an exchange program between 2002-2008 in Philadelphia at Fox Chace Cancer Center, focusing on viral trans-synaptic transmission and CNS immune response mechanisms. Her subsequent experience comprises 10 years of work at the Translational Therapeutic Screening Center at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute in the Department of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology. Using patient iPSC-derived 2D and 3D cellular model systems for neurodegenerative disorders, she performed high-content image-based small molecule screens in collaboration with disease foundations and industry partners. Dr. Makhortova led multiple drug discovery and cellular biomarker identification studies, including spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and diabetes type II, to discover personalized medicine approaches.
In 2019 she joined the Translational Neuroscience Center at Boston Children's Hospital in the role of Scientific Project Manager, where she helped leverage TNC operations and fundraising efforts.