Dr. Matynia received her Ph.D. in Cell Biology from Baylor College of Medicine. She then completed a postdoctoral fellow in neuroscience at the University of California, Los Angeles in Dr. Alcino Silva’s group. Dr.Matynia served as research faculty at the University of California, Los Angeles at the Jules Stein Eye Institute before joining the faculty at the College of Optometry, University of Houston in 2023. Her research focuses on neural circuits associated with clinically relevant disease or dysfunction in both the retina and cornea. The current funded projects in her laboratory are 1) investigating role of melanopsin in retinal and trigeminal circuitry underlying photo allodynia (light-induced or -enhanced pain), 2) precision mapping of corneal afferents for blink, lacrimation and nociception, and 3) identification of early retinal biomarkers of neurodegeneration in Alzheimer’s Disease. Dr. Matynia joins the Department of Vision Sciences as an Associate Professor.