Browse School of Medicine | Stanford Profiles

Current Research and Scholarly InterestsBroadly, the Okwan lab’s primary interest is to understand how and why the immune system contributes to nearly all chronic diseases. The immune system of the modern human has evolved from a history of stress to the species: famines, continual bouts of lethal pandemics, as well as major climate/environmental and migratory changes that exposed the immune system to novel threats. At the forefront of these challenges are innate immune cells, particularly neutrophils, the most abundant leukocytes. For the first time in human history – at least in the western world- we live in an era of abundance. The Okwan lab is interested in understanding how this traumatic history creates a functional mismatch for the neutrophil, which we believe underpins their roles in chronic diseases of the modern era: cancer, cardiovascular disease, neurodegeneration, and autoimmune disorders. Rather than wholesale depletion of neutrophils and innate immune cells, we seek to identify novel approaches to leverage these cells to combat various diseases.

Omobola Olaniyan

Clinical Instructor (Affiliated), Pediatrics - General Pediatrics

Clayton Olash

Affiliate, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

BioClayton Olash, MD is a psychiatry resident at the Medical University of South Carolina and an affiliate researcher with Stanford University. His work bridges psychiatry, neuroscience, and contemplative traditions, with a focus on how altered states of consciousness can catalyze lasting psychological change.

Clayton's current research spans multiple projects, including studies on ibogaine and its impact on the default mode network, rapid-acting neuromodulation techniques such as SAINT TMS combined with meditation, and a novel high-dose electrotherapy device for home-based treatment of depression. His broader aim is to understand how psychedelics, brain stimulation, and meditative practices can modulate self-related processing and promote enduring well-being.

With backgrounds in philosophy, psychology, and medicine, Clayton's work emphasizes integration: uniting ancient contemplative wisdom with modern neuroscience and emerging technologies. His long-term goal is to develop translational models of care that transform transient altered states into sustainable therapeutic traits.