Postdoc Spotlight: Hajar Miranzadeh

Hajar Miranzadeh moved to Canada in 2015 to start her PhD in Pharmacology at the University of Saskatchewan. In 2023, she joined CTN+ as a postdoctoral fellow after 2 years of working in Dr. Christopher Power’s laboratory at the University of Alberta. Her research focuses on a novel protein that may affect cell death in the nervous systems of people living with HIV.

The path to research

“Since my early days as an undergraduate studying cellular and molecular biology, I found myself fascinated by how cells operate as the building blocks of life,” said Dr. Miranzadeh.  “Their intricate signalling pathways and ability to adapt to environmental changes captivated me, and this curiosity only deepened during my graduate and doctoral studies in genetics and pharmacology.”

Understanding how cellular processes influence health and disease has been a driving force behind her career. This interest also inspires her work in Dr. Power’s lab where she’s currently studying cell death in HIV-infected cells (astrocytes) and its role in brain inflammation.

Pyroptosis is a highly inflammatory form of cell death that is thought to play a key role in the degeneration of brain cells that can affect some people living with HIV (also called NeuroHIV). NeuroHIV leads to HIV-Associated Neurocognitive Disorder (HAND), making it an important area of research for healthy aging and wellbeing for people living with HIV.

Through her research, Dr. Miranzadeh hopes to understand how HIV triggers cell death or pyroptosis in the brain. These findings could help uncover new targets to reduce brain inflammation and improve neurological outcomes in people living with HIV.

She is particularly excited by the idea of one study’s findings shedding light on molecular pathways across diseases. “Insights from my mpox research helped me explore new mechanisms involved in HIV-related brain inflammation. This interconnectedness across projects makes the research process dynamic and inspiring,” she said.

What does she hope to achieve through her postdoc project?

“My ultimate goal is to contribute to the development of innovative therapies that not only control HIV infection but also address its long-term neurological complications,” says Dr. Miranzadeh. “On a broader scale, I aspire to advance the understanding of virus–host interactions within the central nervous system.”

The future looks bright for Miranzadeh, as she hopes to scale her expertise in neurovirology and inflammation and her findings across disciplines. She plans to explore therapeutic interventions for neurodegenerative diseases beyond HIV, such as Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s. “My long-term goal is to lead a research team that bridges fundamental science and clinical innovation to tackle complex neurological disorders,” she added.