Meg Fox, PhD

Principal Investigator

Meg received a BA in Chemistry and Biology from Florida Gulf Coast University in 2009 under Dr. Jose Barreto. She received a Ph.D. in Biological Chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2016 under Dr. Mark Wightman, studying adaptations in  in vivo catecholamine signaling. Meg then completed  postdoctoral training at the University of Maryland School of Medicine with Dr. Mary Kay Lobo in 2020, studying cell-type specific molecular mechanisms in stress and substance use.  Meg is currently an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology and Perioperative Medicine, and in the Department of Pharmacology at Penn State College of Medicine. 

Outside of the lab Meg enjoys traveling, playing music, creative vegetarian cooking, craft beer, and spending time with her cats Amstel, Juniper, and Siggi.  ​ 

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Alexandria (Allie) Ostman - PhD Student, Anatomy

Allie is a PhD student in the Anatomy program at Penn State College of Medicine. She is excited to be working on her thesis  in the Fox lab. 

Allie completed her B.S. at Bloomsburg University in 2018. She then worked for three years as a Research Technician in the Buchkovich Lab where she achieved two coauthor papers.   

Before joining the Fox lab, Allie had an amazing opportunity to work on "Adenosine Receptor 3 Mediated Neuroprotection of Photoreceptors" in zebrafish with Dr. Stella. 

Annalisa Montemarano

PhD Student, Neuroscience

Annalisa is a PhD student in the Neuroscience program at Penn State College of Medicine. She received her B.A. in Cell Biology & Neuroscience from Rutgers University in 2022, where she worked for four years as a research assistant for Dr. Mark West studying the effects of fentanyl addiction on neuroimmune functioning. 

Upon rotating in the Fox Lab in March 2023, she knew very early on that this would be the lab for her, and she is very excited to be completing her thesis work here. Outside the lab, Annalisa enjoys drawing, reading, and cooking.

Hajra Sohail

Research Technician

Hajra recieved a B.S. in biology and a minor in art at Temple University. In  her junior and senior years there, she worked in Dr. Sara Jane Ward's lab, where she did a project on using CBD derivatives to reduce chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain. 

Hajra joined the lab in October 2023.

In her free time, Hajra likes to read and draw. 

Samiksha Pandey

 PhD Student, Neuroscience 

Samiksha is a Neuroscience PhD student at Penn State College of Medicine. She received an MSc in Integrative neuroscience from Otto Von Guericke University, Germany, in 2023. During her master's studies, she worked as a research assistant for 18 months in the neuropharmacology of emotional systems for Prof. Dr. Markus Fendt. Her master's thesis was on the Role of Anterior Cingulate Cortex Orexin in Attention, Impulsivity, and Affective State Discrimination. Samiksha joined the Fox Lab in May 2024.  She likes hiking, cooking, and reading in her free time. 

Farrah Alkhaleel

Research Technician

Laura Murdaugh, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Scholar

Laura received her BS in Biology from Indiana University of Pennsylvania in 2015, where she studied the neuroethology of reward and aggression via orexin in green anoles. She then worked as a research technician at the University of North Carolina under Dr. Scott Parnell, where she studied the teratogenic effects of prenatal alcohol and cannabinoid exposure in mice. In 2023 she completed her Ph.D. in Translational Biology, Medicine, and Health from Virginia Tech, where she worked under Dr. Matt Buczynski to investigate  behavioral and cognitive changes associated with pain and addiction.

Laura joined the Fox lab in January 2025. Outside of lab Laura enjoys reading comics, playing video games, knitting, or sewing.