Lab News

2026

February: I love working at UVA, and they were kind enough to let me talk a little about my work in their Research in Motion Series.

Research in Motion: Ian Wenker, PhD

February: Talia Marc has joined the Wenker Lab as a first-year graduate student – welcome, Talia!

December: Ian and Selena attend PAME and AES conferences in Atlanta.
- Selena wins the best Abstract Award at PAME!
November: The team goes to SfN – lookout San Diego!
June: Miguel J. Fernández Batista joins the lab as part of the Summer Research Internship Program.
May:
- Dr. DuBar wins Best Abstract honorable mention at the Anesthesiology Celebration of research!
- May: Ian and Co-I, Brant Isakson, are award a Transformative Neuroscience Pilot Grant from UVA’s Brain Institute to study “The Cardiovascular Regulation of Seizures and SUDEP.
April: Crystal Dezha-Bolteada has joined the Wenker Lab as a first year graduate student – welcome Crystal!
January: Ian presents for the Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology at Emory University.

December: the crew goes to LA for the American Epilepsy Society (AES) and Partners Against Mortality in Epilepsy (PAME) annual meetings!
September: Ian presents for the Neuroscience Graduate Program at UVA.

December: Ian presents at the American Epilepsy Society Annual Meeting.
November: Ian presents in the Respiratory Rhythm Nanosymposium at Neuroscience 2023 in Washington, D.C.
November: UVA Epilepsy Interest Group Retreat.
October: Published “A Water Nymph’s Curse and the Serotonergic Mechanism of Postictal Breathing Dysfunction.” EPILEPSY CURRENTS. doi: 10.1177/15357597231199340.
October: Marissa Incer and Selena Garcia DuBar have joined the lab – welcome aboard!
September: Published “Neuronal plasticity contributes to postictal death.” PROGRESS IN NEUROBIOLOGY. doi: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2023.102531.
June:
- The Wenker Lab moved into a new lab space in Old Medical School – yay!
- Wenker was awarded an R01 from NINDS to study “The Neural Circuitry of Seizure-Induced Apnea and SUDEP” (6^th percentile).
May: Published “Waiting to Inhale: Preventing Fatality from Seizure-Induced Apnea.” EPILEPSY CURRENTS. doi: 1177/15357597231159466.

Ian presents at the American Epilepsy Society Investigators Workshop – The Neurocircuitry of Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy: Insights from CURE Epilepsy, in Nashville, TN.
Ian receives an Exploration-Hypothesis Development Award from the DOD to study “Mechanisms of Seizure-Induced Death of TSC Model Mice”.
Published “Forebrain epileptiform activity is not required for seizure-induced apnea in a mouse model of Scn8a epilepsy.” FRONTIERS IN NEURAL CIRCUITS. doi:3389/fncir.2022.1002013.
Ian presents at the Gordon Conference: Mechanisms of Epilepsy and Neural Synchronization, in Barcelona, ES.
Published “Peri-Ictal Autonomic Control of Cardiac Function and Seizure-Induced Death.” FRONTIERS IN NEUROSCIENCE. doi:3389/fnins.2021.795145.
Ian wins Best Presentation at the UVA Anesthesiology Department’s Celebration of Research.