Women in Medicine: Liliana Espinoza

Liliana Espinoza, Graduate Student

Department of Cellular and Integrative Physiology
Long School of Medicine

Ms. Liliana Espinoza works as a graduate student in Dr. Carie Boychuk’s research lab, which focuses on cardio metabolic health as it relates to brainstem vagal motor circuits. Ms. Espinoza’s project requires her to synthesize data from optogenetics and radio telemetry in sophisticated transgenic mice with single cell neurotransmission recorded with whole-cell patch-clamp protocols. According to her advisor, her independence and perseverance have been evident throughout her time in lab.

Ms. Espinoza has won several prestigious awards, including Student of Year Award here at UT Health, the Society for Neuroscience’s Trainee Development Award, and most recently the American Physiological Society’s Outstanding Graduate Award in Neural Control and Autonomic Regulation. Ms. Espinoza has a primary research article from her initial rotation and has first-authored two published review articles. Her current project will yield an additional three primary research articles already in preparation planned for submission by the end of July. She will be sole first author on two of these manuscripts and second author on a third. By the time Ms. Espinoza graduates in December of 2022, she will have 5 first authored publications.

It also worth noting that Ms. Espinoza’s immigration status is Deferred Action for Childhood Arrival (DACA) having grown up up in the American southwest, she is originally from Mexico. She serves as an outstanding representative of an underrepresented minority woman excelling with a space not always as gracious to her as she is to it.