Scott Mackin, PhD 

Principal Investigator, [email protected]

Dr. Mackin is a clinical neuropsychologist and Professor of Psychiatry at the University of California, San Francisco. His program of research is focused on structural and functional brain abnormalities associated with accelerated cognitive decline in older adults with depression. He currently splits his time at the SF VA Medical Center were he sees patients and is running research at UCSF within the LLD lab.

Dr. Mackin completed his undergraduate degree from Dickinson College, his Masters from West Chester University, and his PhD from Penn State.  He completed his neuropsychology internship at the Medical University of South Carolina and his fellowship at the UC Davis Alzheimer's Disease Center. He has held a faculty position at UCSF since 2003. 

J, Craig Nelson, M.D.

Principal Investigator, [email protected]

J. Craig Nelson, M.D. has been a Professor of Psychiatry at UCSF since 2002. He holds the Leon J. Epstein Endowed Chair in Geriatric Psychiatry. He is the Director of the Geriatric Psychiatry Fellowship Program and the Director of the Geriatric Psychiatry Clinic at UCSF. Prior to 2002 he was Professor of Psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine. Dr. Nelson is the past president of the American Society of Clinical Psychopharmacology. He has published over 200 scientific articles, chapters, or books and has been listed in “Best Doctors in America” since its inception. 

Dr. Nelson completed his undergraduate training at Stanford University, his medical training at University of Wisconsin-Madison, and his psychiatry residency at Yale University School of Medicine. He is board certified in adult psychiatry and geriatric psychiatry.

Philip Insel, PhD

Assistant Professor; [email protected]

Philip has a background in biostatistics and neuroscience, combining technical expertise with an interest in understanding brain health. His research focuses on the intersection of depression and cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease, leveraging statistical methods and neuroimaging to explore biomarkers and clinical outcomes. His research aims to improve early detection and intervention strategies for those at risk.

Maria Kryza-Lacombe, PhD

Postdoctoral Researcher; [email protected]

Dr. Kryza-Lacombe is a postdoctoral fellow in Neuropsychology/Geropsychology at the Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Centers (MIRECC) Advanced Fellowship program at the San Francisco VA Medical Center, and is affiliated with the Late Life Depression Program at UC San Francisco. Her research focuses on the intersection of mental and cognitive health and has been informed by perspectives from neuroscience, neuropsychology, and mental health with a strong focus on clinical translation. She examines the neural and neuropsychological mechanisms underlying emotional and cognitive dysfunction and resilience in older adults and how these mechanisms can be leveraged to inform cognitive and behavioral prevention and intervention efforts to optimize wellbeing and vitality during the aging process.

Dr. Kryza-Lacombe completed her undergraduate degree at SUNY Plattsburgh and a master’s degree at City College of New York. She completed her PhD at the San Diego State University/UC San Diego Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology with an emphasis in Neuropsychology, and her Neuropsychology internship at the San Francisco VA.

Michelle Kassel, PhD

Clinical Neuropsycholoist; [email protected]

Dr. Michelle Kassel is a Clinical Neuropsychologist and Geropsychologist at the San Francisco VA Health Care System. Dr. Kassel’s clinical and research aims emphasize brain health equity in aging by integrating cultural-linguistic diversity into neuropsychology and cognitive neuroscience. Her research employs neuropsychological, neuroimaging, and computational modelling techniques to examine the neurocognitive and sociocultural correlates of risk and resilience in mood disorders, healthy aging, and aging neuropathology. The goals of this work are to inform intervention targets that promote cognitive resilience, enhance clinical outcomes, and advance personalized medicine in aging populations inclusive of historically minoritized and underrepresented groups at increased risk of cognitive decline.

Dr. Kassel earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and received her M.S. and Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. She completed her clinical internship in Neuropsychology at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and post-doctoral fellowship in Neuropsychology/Geropsychology at the San Francisco VA Health Care System and University of California, San Francisco.

Edith Harris, PsyD

Postdoctoral Researcher; [email protected]

Dr. Harris is affiliated with the Late Life Depression Team as a Neuropsychology and Addiction Research advanced fellow at the San Francisco VA’s Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Center (MIRECC). Her research focuses on the cognitive underpinnings of risky behaviors associated with late life depression, including substance misuse and hoarding, as well interventions to promote cognitive flexibility and mitigate risk. Dr. Harris received an undergraduate degree at Pomona College and master’s degree at Humboldt Universität zu Berlin’s School of Mind and Brain. She completed her doctoral degree in clinical psychology at the PGSP-Stanford PsyD Consortium and doctoral internship in neuropsychology at New York University’s Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine.

Nithya Ganesh, MSHI

Program Manager, [email protected]

Nithya is a research professional at UCSF, managing the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative – Depression (ADNI-D) study. Her previous work includes research in the Laboratory of Medical Epigenetics at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai under Dr. Fatemeh Haghighi, where she investigated the role of epigenetics in neuropsychiatric disorders among Veterans. She is particularly interested in utilizing data-driven approaches to develop predictive analytics for identifying individuals at risk of neurodegenerative disorders. Nithya received her undergraduate degree from the University of Pittsburgh along with two graduate degrees from Arizona State University and University of Pittsburgh.