About Me

Sumaya Akter

Ph.D. Student in Neuroscience, University of New Hampshire

📍 Durham, New Hampshire    |    ✉️ sumaya.akter@unh.edu

My research focuses on how primary cilia signaling and the Reelin pathway coordinate neuronal migration, polarity, and laminar organization during cortical development. My recent work shows that pyramidal neuron primary cilia often sit near the base of apical dendrites and orient opposite the axon initial segment (AIS), reflecting directional alignment along the apical–basal axis. In Reelin-deficient (reeler) mice, this polarity is disrupted, with disoriented and elongated cilia in principal neurons across the neocortex and hippocampus—implicating Reelin in controlling ciliary orientation and length during postnatal neurodevelopment. Using high-resolution confocal imaging, immunostaining, and quantitative morphometrics, I investigate how ciliary dynamics influence neuronal positioning, cortical patterning, and disorders such as autism, schizophrenia, and epilepsy.