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Dr Paul Forysthe
Lab Director
Dr. Forsythe obtained his PhD in Immunopharmacology at Queen’s University Belfast, UK. He then went on to pursue Post-Doctoral studies at the University of Alberta and McMaster University before becoming a faculty member in the Department of Medicine, McMaster University and Principal Investigator at the McMaster Brain-Body Institute, and Firestone Institute for Respiratory Health.
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He joined the faculty of the University of Alberta as the AstraZeneca Canada Inc., Chair in Asthma and Obstructive Lung Disease in July 2021 and was appointed as Tenured Professor in June 2025.
Shivani Mandal
PhD Scholar (2022)
Shivani completed her bachelors in Biotechnology from SRMIST. She previously studied two compounds: Rose Bengal (RB) and Thymoquinone, their effect on Tau & Aβ42 expression in Alzheimer’s, oxidative stress and behavioral phenotypes in transgenic fly models.
For her thesis, she studied the role of Bacillus subtilis CU1 probiotic on oxidative stress, memory, mechanosensation, locomotor activity and alteration in dopamine and GABA levels behavior in Parkinson’s induced transgenic C. elegans.
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Shivani is currently investigating the lung-brain axis in allergic asthma at the Forsythe Lab.
Besides research, she loves arts and crafts, classical singing, basketball and hiking!
Charley Blackman
Undergraduate student (2025)
Charley is a fourth-year Biochemistry honors undergraduate student at the University of Alberta.
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Throughout the fall and winter semester 2025-26, Charley has been at the Forsythe lab working on her honors research project. This project is focused on investigating the role of the microbiome in PPD susceptibility in mice models. This is done in the hopes of determining if probiotics have therapeutic potential when it comes to mood disorders, such as PPD.
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Afterwards, she intends to work on a masters in Forensics Science and continue microbiome research within that field.
In her spare time, Charley enjoys reading, hiking, painting, and videogames!
Riya Jindal
Ph.D scholar (2026)
Riya is a graduate student with a background in microbiology and biotechnology, interested in host–microbe interactions and their role in immune and neural regulation. She completed her BSc in Life Science and MSc in Biotechnology in India. She joined the UNESCO-Regional Centre for Biotechnology as a Research Assistant, working on the role of Lactobacillus species and their metabolites in modulating intestinal homeostasis in IBD.
Her current focus is to use mouse models, organoids, and epithelial cell systems to elucidate the role of microbiota-driven signalling along the Nasal-Lung–brain axis and its implications for respiratory and neurobehavioral disorders.
Outside the lab, she enjoys painting, long walks and good coffee!
Marie Armbruster
PhD Scholar (2022)
Originating from France, Marie obtained her bachelor in Cellular Biology and Physiology at the University of Strasbourg. She has a dual degree; in cognitive neurosciences and neuroimmunology.
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Marie's research revolves around the microbiota-gut-brain axis. She has previously studied the effects of maternal overexposure to bacterial peptidoglycans on the offspring’s brain development and behaviour at the Karolinska Institutet.
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At the Forsythe Lab she is investigating the effects of specific probiotic strains in a post-partum depression mice model. She is also working on understanding the role of neuropeptides in allergy in human cell culture models.
Ayshna Diya
Masters student (2025)
Dr Ritu Mann-Nüttel
Postdoctoral Researcher (2022)
Ritu completed her undergrad in Pharmaceutical Sciences at the Ludwig-Maximilians University and an M.Sc. in Biomedical Sciences at Maastricht University to work on the immune-modulatory role of honey during wound healing. Ritu later joined University of Oxford to investigate novel MRSA vaccine antigens.​ She continued with a PhD in cellular immunology at the Heinrich-Heine University where she worked on the global transcription factor reservoir in TLR9 activated plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs), the role of the AP-1 factor BATF for development and function of pDCs.
Her research in Dr. Forsythe’s lab focuses on the importance of pulmonary neuroendocrine cells (PNECs) for lung health and communication along the lung-brain axis. In addition, she is establishing Nanopore sequencing pipelines for in-house bulk RNA and lung microbiome sequencing.
Besides her interest in lab work, she likes to participate in science outreach events!
Neha Barve
Summer student (2023)
Neha is a fourth-year undergraduate pharmacology student at the University of Alberta. She is passionate about exploring the connections between different physiological systems and how these connections could potentially contribute to the development of effective treatments for diseases.
At the Forsythe lab, Neha is working on a summer research project that focuses on lung-brain signaling associated with allergic airway disease.
Outside of the lab, she enjoys reading, biking, traveling with her family, and experimenting with video and photo editing.