Neuroscience research is evolving rapidly, bringing new opportunities and challenges in disease modeling, colony management, breeding strategy, and translational discovery. In this video series, Taconic's scientific experts share practical insights drawn from their hands-on experience supporting researchers in biotech, pharmaceutical, and academic organizations.
Episode 1
Alzheimer's disease is highly heterogeneous, making it difficult for any single preclinical model to capture the full complexity of human disease biology and therapeutic response. In this episode, Dr. Janell Richardson explores emerging approaches to Alzheimer's disease modeling and discusses how advanced preclinical platforms can help researchers investigate genotype-dependent differences and improve translational relevance.
Episode 2
Producing study-ready cohorts of neurological disease models often requires careful planning around breeding performance, phenotype development, aging, and attrition. In this episode, Dr. Caroline Mallick-Wood shares insights for anticipating these challenges and designing breeding programs that support neuroscience research.
Episode 3
Even the most carefully designed neurological disease breeding programs can face unexpected challenges that threaten study timelines, cohort availability, and research outcomes. In this episode, Dr. Gretchen Kusek shares practical strategies for anticipating risk, managing biological variability, and building contingency plans that help keep complex neuroscience research programs on track.
Episode 4
As Alzheimer's disease research advances, understanding how genetic factors influence disease biology and therapeutic response is becoming increasingly important. In this episode, Dr. Moriah Jacobson, explains why APOE genotype matters in preclinical research and how incorporating APOE-specific models can help researchers ask more translationally relevant questions earlier in development.
Episode 5 - Coming Soon
As neurological therapies become more precise, researchers need in vivo models that accurately capture the underlying biology required to evaluate increasingly targeted therapeutic approaches. In this episode, Dr. Chris Raymond discusses how thoughtful model design can improve translational relevance, strengthen preclinical data, and build confidence in development decisions.
Director, Portfolio Management Neurobiology and Rare Disease
Dr. Sarah Sterlace helps make innovative in vivo models and services accessible to neuroscience researchers around the world. With extensive experience translating complex research challenges into practical solutions, she partners with scientists across biotech, pharmaceutical, and academic organizations to advance preclinical discovery. Through these conversations, Sarah helps viewers explore emerging research approaches, model selection strategies, and opportunities to accelerate scientific progress.
Director, R&D
Dr. Janell Richardson leads the development of innovative research models and technologies that help advance translational science. Her work focuses on creating solutions that enable researchers to investigate complex disease biology with greater precision and confidence. In this series, Janell explores emerging approaches to Alzheimer's disease modeling and discusses how advanced preclinical platforms can help scientists better understand genotype-dependent disease mechanisms and therapeutic responses.
Scientific Solutions Consultant
Dr. Caroline Mallick-Wood helps researchers overcome the practical challenges of working with complex neurological disease models. Drawing on her experience supporting breeding and colony management programs, she works with scientists to optimize study planning and ensure research-ready cohorts are available when needed. In this series, Caroline shares strategies for managing the unique biological and operational challenges that can impact neuroscience research success.
Associate Director, Scientific Solutions
Dr. Moriah Jacobson joined Taconic Biosciences as a Field Applications Scientist in October 2020, and is now Associate Director, Scientific Solutions. She has deep expertise in the development, execution, and review of translational rodent studies. She obtained her Ph.D. in Integrative Neuroscience from Stony Brook University, where she discovered novel biomarkers for several models of chronic stress and chemotherapy-induced cognitive impairment and peripheral neuropathy. She then completed her postdoctoral research at Uniformed Services University where she studied novel rapid acting antidepressant drugs targeting kappa opioid receptors.
