The Duke/UNC Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (ADRC) Research Education Component (REC) Core is pleased to announce our 2025 REC Scholars: Miles Bryan, PhD (UNC-Chapel Hill) and Melissa Walsh, PhD (UNC-Chapel Hill). REC Scholars will be supported in their development as investigators in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD). REC Scholars receive funding towards their ADRD research, mentorship from ADRC investigators, access to technical and project support through the ADRC Cores, and opportunities for research collaborations.

Read more about the 2025 Duke/UNC ADRC REC Scholars below.

Miles Bryan, PhD

Research Associate

Department of Neurology

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Dr. Miles Bryan recently transitioned to a Research Associate position after four years as a postdoctoral fellow in the lab of Dr. Todd Cohen at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Dr. Bryan’s family has been personally impacted by Alzheimer’s disease, and this experience drove him to pursue biomedical research after college. He completed a PhD in Neuroscience from Vanderbilt University and eventually joined Dr. Todd Cohen’s lab at UNC in 2020, where he decidedly transitioned to the Alzheimer’s disease field.

Dr. Bryan investigates the pathogenic role of the tau protein (MAPT) in Alzheimer’s disease and uses both basic science and translational approaches to discover and implement new tau-centric therapies. His REC project, “Targeting acetylated tau in Alzheimer’s disease using immunotherapy and CRISPR-screening approaches”, is a translational pre-clinical trial in mice using a novel intrabody therapy for AD and involves a discovery-based CRISPR screen aimed at identifying new modifiers of tau pathology and aging for future investigation.

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Melissa Walsh, PhD

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Department of Psychiatry

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Dr. Melissa Walsh is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the Psychiatry Department at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. Her career began as a speech-language pathologist specializing in cognitive neurorehabilitation, where she gained valuable insight into how subtle cognitive changes can profoundly impact daily life. She completed her PhD in Auditory and Language Neuroscience at Arizona State University before joining the labs of Dr. Gabriel Dichter and Dr. Crystal Schiller at UNC in 2022. Her expertise is in neuroimaging, cognitive aging, and reproductive neuroendocrinology.

Dr. Walsh’s REC project, “Impact of Menopause and APOE4 on Neurosteroid Balance and Alzheimer’s Disease Biomarkers in Women” will investigate menopause-induced alterations in cerebrospinal fluid neurosteroids and their relationships to AD-related biomarkers. The study will provide preliminary evidence regarding candidate mechanisms by which menopause interacts with APOE4 to accelerate neurodegeration and neuropathology. Findings will generate essential pilot data to support larger-scale longitudinal studies and external funding applications.

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Welcome to the Duke/UNC ADRC Miles & Melissa!