Yasmin Escobedo Lozoya yescobedo

Dr. Escobedo Lozoya co-founded AntoZero with a vision to bridge fundamental neuroscience insights with the urgent need for effective treatments for age-related cognitive decline. Her scientific passion lies in understanding the complex spatiotemporal dynamics of brain circuits, from the molecular mechanisms shaping synaptic function to the network-level activity underlying computation and behavior, a passion deepened by the personal impact of Alzheimer's disease on her family. Dr. Escobedo Lozoya’s research experience provides a unique breadth and depth relevant to AntoZero's mission. She earned her Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Brandeis University (Nelson Lab), where she became an expert in homeostatic plasticity. Using a combination of electrophysiology (patch-clamp), calcium imaging, electron microscopy, and array tomography in organotypic cortical slice cultures, she investigated how chronic activity deprivation during development can lead to maladaptive changes, including E/I imbalance and epileptiform activity, providing key insights into the failure modes of homeostatic regulation. This work is reported in two eNeuro publications characterizing both the functional and surprising structural consequences (synapse loss coupled with strengthening) of prolonged network silencing. Seeking to explore how cellular and plasticity mechanisms contribute to circuit function and behavior in vivo, Dr. Escobedo Lozoya joined the Department of Genetics at Harvard Medical School as a Postdoctoral Fellow (Dymecki Lab). Here, she employed cutting-edge intersectional genetic strategies combined with transcriptomics and electrophysiology to dissect the heterogeneity of the serotonergic system. Her research focused on identifying specific cell types within the Raphe nucleus and understanding how their unique properties and connectivity patterns contribute to neuromodulation, particularly in the context of affective disorders and reward memory formation. This work yielded insights into how specific neuromodulatory neurons can gate information flow between brain regions by tuning circuit dynamics. Dr. Escobedo Lozoya’s combined expertise in synaptic and homeostatic plasticity provides the strong scientific foundation for AntoZero. She recognized the critical need for human-relevant in vitro models that could assess the functional integrity and resilience of neural networks, going beyond the limitations of existing preclinical systems. She leads the design and implementation of the company's innovative 3D multi-cellular iPSC platform, integrating diverse cell types to model the brain's Integrative Homeostatic Network (IHN). Her focus is on developing and validating robust functional assays based on network dynamics, plasticity, and response to perturbation, creating a predictive system for identifying and testing interventions aimed at restoring network health in aging and neurodegeneration. Dr. Escobedo Lozoya is also deeply committed to mentorship and fostering inclusive excellence in science, having initiated and participated in numerous DEI and mentoring programs throughout her career.

boston

scientist

biotech

AntoZero