Ashley
Farre

I am a postdoctoral research fellow in Dr. Diana Mitchell’s lab at the University of Idaho. I am particularly interested in elucidating the processes that contribute to the development and disease of the nervous system, with the ultimate goal of improving the lives of those affected by nervous system diseases. While pursuing my Bachelor of Science in Biology at a small liberal arts institution in the pacific northwest, I fell in love with both research and neuroscience. I spent my summers doing research internships, and in the summer before my senior year I ended up at the University of Idaho, interning with Dr. Deborah Stenkamp. I was so inspired by the people and the research in her lab that I decided to join her group for my PhD. During my time as a graduate student, I studied zebrafish retinal development with a focus on cone photoreceptors, and I was awarded an NIH NEI F31 research fellowship in my second year (2020). I graduated with my PhD in Neuroscience in August of 2023 and received two University of Idaho College of Science Outstanding Graduate Student awards. When the opportunity arose to lead a neuroscience project in the Mitchell lab, with a focus on synaptic development and potential for high-impact, exciting future research, I knew I had to take it. Currently, I am focused on understanding the role of microglia in synaptic development, maturation, refinement, and regeneration in the retina.