Chad received his BS in Psychology from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee, where he worked with Dr. Devin Mueller studying sex differences and growth factor signaling in cocaine-associated learning. He later worked as a research technician with Dr. Jim Moyer, Jr., investigating neurobiological mechanisms of aging, neuroprotection, and fear learning. Chad earned his PhD in Biology from The Pennsylvania State University with Dr. Janine Kwapis, studying epigenetic mechanisms underlying fear learning and memory updating across the lifespan. His research interests focus on identifying behavioral and pharmacological interventions to improve cognitive function during aging. Chad is passionate about promoting an inclusive scientific community that values diverse perspectives, experiences, and approaches to advance innovation and scientific discovery.

Sean P. Curran, PhD, is a Professor of Gerontology and Molecular and Computational Biology and the Vice Dean, Dean of Faculty, and Dean of Research for the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. He is co-director of the USC-Buck Nathan Shock Center of Excellence in the Basic Biology of Aging. Curran developed the first-of-its-kind PhD program in Geroscience, which recruited its inaugural class in 2024. Curran’s research group has invested in defining molecular, genetic, and environmental factors that affect multiple health parameters (resistance to environmental and dietary stress, mobility, metabolism, reproductive fitness, and mitochondrial function) throughout life. The long-term goal is to generate blueprints that enable an individual to maximize their health over their lifespan. Informed by genetics, Curran’s lab develops the capacity to predict which diets are ideal for a healthy life and which should be avoided. Curran’s current research program is funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIA and NIGMS) and has received past research funding from the Ellison Medical Foundation, the American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR), and the American Heart Association. Curran is a Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America (GSA) and is the 2025 Vice Chair (Chair in 2026) of the GSA Biological Sciences Section. He has received numerous awards for his research, including the AFAR Vincent Cristofalo Rising Star in Aging Research Award, Paul F. Glenn Award, the Nathan Shock New Investigator Award (GSA), and the Ewald W. Busse Research Award. Curran’s mentoring has been recognized by the Mellon Foundation, and in 2019 he received the USC Provost’s Mentoring Award. He received his PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from UCLA and post-doctoral training at Harvard Medical School and the Massachusetts General Hospital.

Nathan LeBrasseur, PhD, holds the Noaber Foundation Professorship in Aging Research with appointments in the Departments of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Physiology and Biomedical Engineering at Mayo Clinic. He is the Director of the Robert and Arlene Kogod Center on Aging and the Co-Director of the Paul F. Glenn Center for Biology of Aging Research at Mayo Clinic. Dr. LeBrasseur’s research team conducts translational “bench-to-bedside” research on strategies to improve physical function, metabolism, and resilience in the face of aging and disease. His latest work has centered on cellular senescence. He has received the Glenn Award for Research in Biological Mechanisms of Aging, the Nathan W. Shock Award Lecture from the National Institute on Aging, and the Vincent Cristofalo Rising Star Award in Aging Research from the American Federation for Aging Research. Dr. LeBrasseur is a Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America.

Mark is an Associate Professor with Tenure in the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in the School of Medicine at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center. Mark joined UNM after a postdoctoral fellowship at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging, and a PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology from the University of California, San Francisco. Before that, he received a BS in Mechanical Engineering and a BS in Biology from the University of Texas at Austin.