Gefei Zhang
Undergraduate Student
Gefei Zhang is pursuing a Biology & Mathematics B.Sc. at McGill University. She recently completed a project on parameter estimation for the Morris–Lecar model, a model that describes the relationship between membrane potential and the activation of ion channels within the membrane, by comparing maximum-likelihood and functional data analysis approaches in R to recover biophysical parameters from noisy ODE simulations. In parallel, she has hands-on wet-lab experience: generating mNeonGreen mutants via error-prone PCR with SDS-PAGE/Western blot characterization; recording electropharyngeograms in C. elegans and analyzing larval behavior under optogenetic stimulation; and performing in-vitro electrophysiology in acute rat hippocampal slices. At McGill, she supports learning as an Undergraduate Student Course Assistant for Linear Algebra and Statistics, and Applied Regression. She also served as VP Social for the Society of Undergraduate Mathematics Students, coordinating large cross-disciplinary events. Proficient in R and Python, she is interested in statistical learning, ODE-based inference, and data-driven models of neural systems. Born and raised in Wuhan, she enjoys films, cycling, and musicals.