Meet your 2023 Community Leaders!

[Bianca Williams]

Welcome 2023 Community Leaders! Please introduce yourself and get to know other members of the Neuronline Community. In this forum you will be able to connect with your Community Leaders and use this space for event recaps, motivation, and support as you continue advancing in your careers.

[Julia Araujo]

Greetings from Brazil!

My name is Julia Araujo. I'm an undergraduate student at a medical school program in my country.

I have been researching since High School and Neuroscience has been a passion of mine for even longer.

I'm so excited that I got to join SfN's Community Leaders group!

I hope to meet you all as much as I will be presenting more about myself in further posts.

[Bin Yin]

Greetings from China!

My name is Bin Yin and I got my PhD from Duke in 2016, studying neurobiological mechanisms of timing and time perception in animal models.

Now I have my own research team in China, although a very small one with limited resources available. But this does not prevent me from pursuing high-quality research elucidating developmental (both psych & neuro) mechanisms underlying learning and behavior.

I am excited to have this chance to discuss with you all the intriguing questions in relation to learning and behavior!

[Kristen Ashley Horner]

Hey y'all!  Greetings from Nashville! 

My name is Ashley Horner, and I'm a Professor of Neuroscience at Frist College of Medicine at Belmont University in Nashville, TN. 

I received my PhD in Neuroscience from Tulane University in 2002 and spent almost 20 years studying basal ganglia pathways involved in methamphetamine-induced repetitive behaviors, as well as striatal circuits responsible for habitual methamphetamine self-administration. 

However, I have just recently transitioned from research to medical education.  Frist College of Medicine is a new medical school, and we plan on opening our doors in the Fall 2024.  So, now my days are filled with designing our neuroscience curriculum.  It is very challenging, but also very exciting!  

I'm delighted to have the chance to discuss anything from addiction to curriculum design to major career transitions .

[valeria muoio]

Hey everyone!  My name is Valéria Muoio , I am a neurosurgeon based in Sao Paulo, Brazil. I did my PhD at the University of São Paulo, with a sandwich period at Johns Hopkins University. I also worked as a scientist at the Charite University in Berlin- Germany. I split my time between the surgical center, the laboratory and teaching at the medical school in Sao Paulo. I believe that such activities are complementary and I think it's beautiful when we transmit this complementarity to the new generations. Exchanging experiences as human beings (not just our technical knowledge) improves our craft and our career perception. I hope I can contribute to the group and I can't wait to learn from everyone.

[Katrina Armstrong]

Hello everyone! My name is Katrina Armstrong and I am currently a PhD Candidate at the University of Manitoba (Winnipeg, Canada). I completed my MSc also at the University of Manitoba under the guidance of Drs. Katinka Stecina and Larry Jordan. My research is dedicated to understanding the descending neural circuits for movement, specifically the role that serotonin may play either in initiating or facilitating movement. I have always been passionate about sports, and I have recently begun participating in programs that bring sport to underrepresented communities. This January, I had the opportunity to play ice hockey with the Kenya Ice Lions in Nairobi. In combination with The Friendship League and The Urban Hockey Foundation, we were able to provide a large equipment donation to fuel the growth of hockey in Kenya.

I look forward to our further discussions on the Neuronline platform! 

 

[Hugo Sanchez-Castillo]

Hola!!!

My name is Hugo Sanchez-Castillo... Im from México and I'm Professor/researcher at the National Autonomous University of Mexico. My research is focused to understand the neurobiology pf PTSD and the stress related disorders. However I love the behavioral pharmacology and timing behavior either.

I like to discuss about science and I hope to contribute to this group and to build bridges with the different groups.

[Mathew Abrams]

Hej!

Greetings from Sweden. My name is Mathew Birdsall Abrams. I am the Director of Science and Training at the International Neuroinformatics Coordinating Facility (INCF), an organization dedicated to the development, evaluation, and endorsement of standards and best practices that embrace the principles of open, FAIR, and citable neuroscience. INCF also provides training on how standards and best practices facilitate reproducibility and enables the publishing the entirety of research outputs, including data and code.  

I am recovering experimental spinal cord injury researcher turned neuroinformatics enthusiast. I am passionate about open science, neurotechnology, and FAIR data management. I look forward to discussing with you all.

[Julie Moonga]

Hello!

I am Julie, based in London- UK.  My neuroscience career started at the bench in molecular and cellular neuroscience- then took a shift from neurodegenerative disease to clinical neuropsychiatry and medical law.  Currently, my research focuses on neurotechnology e.g., regulation and governance of brain computer interfaces.  I have a particular interest in the social, ethical and legal implications of emerging health technologies.  I am a lecturer in neuroscience, artificial intelligence, ethics, regulation and policy.

Edited February 2 by Julie Moonga

[Soaleha Shams]

Hi all. My name is Soaleha Shams and I am a Canadian neuroscientist. I study neurobiology of zebrafish social behaviour and use it as a tool to model typical socialization, as well as atypical social behaviour that is part of human disorders such as depression, social anxiety, and autism. After a BSc in Biology and Psychology (University of Toronto in Mississauga) and a MSc in Neuroscience (Western University, London, Ontario), I did my doctoral work in Behavioural Neuroscience (University of Toronto) under supervision of Dr. Robert Gerlai, looking at effects of social isolation in zebrafish.

I did my 1^st postdoctoral fellowship with Dr. Lars Westberg (Pharmacology dept, Gothenburg University, Sweden), where I investigated effects of genetic and pharmacological manipulation of oxytocin receptors on zebrafish social interaction. Last year, I moved to the Mayo Clinic (Minnesota, USA) to a Stress Biology lab with Dr. Karl Clark. I am currently learning about using CRISPR-Cas9 and other gene-editing technologies to study glucocorticoid receptors and their role in zebrafish social and stress behaviour. Outside the lab, I love teaching and science advocacy, and I hope to play a role in future of neuroscience policy-making in Canada and beyond.

Edited January 26 by Soaleha Shams

[Srikanth Ramaswamy]

Hi all, Bonjour tout le monde, Namaste,

My name is Srikanth Ramaswamy. I am a Swiss-Indian computational neuroscientist. I recently started my laboratory as an Assistant Professor at Newcastle University in the northeast of England. I am currently a Fulbright Visiting Professor at MIT. My research seeks to generate mechanistic insights through which neuromodulators shape cognition in rodent, monkey and human brains and utilize this knowledge to build deep neural network models of adaptive learning and memory.

I did my PhD with Henry Markram at the Ecole Polytechnique Federale De Lausanne (EPFL). After a brief postdoc at the Universite de Lausanne, I returned to the EPFL as a group leader in computational neuroscience before starting my own lab at Newcastle.

I enjoy mentoring the next generation of scientists, science advocacy and outreach. As a neuroscientist of color, I am passionate about championing the cause of diversity, equity and inclusion in brain sciences as an active member of the ALBA network. As the Chair of the IBRO Early Career Committee, I am also committed to building a support framework for early career scientists.

I am thrilled to be part of this group and would love to discuss anything ranging from cortical circuits, neuromodulators, computational neuroscience, deep learning, mentoring, publication practices, diversity, equity and inclusion.

 

 

 

Edited January 28 by Srikanth Ramaswamy

[J. Alex Grizzell]

Hello! 

My name is Alex Grizzell. I am an assistant teaching professor at Emory University in Atlanta, GA. Although research is no longer my primary responsibility, I continue to collaborate with labs at Emory and various other institutions, including The University of Colorado, Boulder and The University of Tennessee, where I completed my post-doc and PhD, respectively. My research broadly focuses on the neural circuitry and neuroendocrinology of stress resilience, particularly in response to social stress and in controllable/uncontrollable situations. I also conduct research on effective teaching/learning practices in neuroscience classrooms and laboratories.  

At Emory, I am a core professor in the Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology (NBB) program that services over 600 neuroscience (undergraduate) majors each year. I teach Behavioral Neuroscience and Advanced Topics in Neuroscience and I am currently developing a course on Neurodiversity as well as Responsible Communication in Neuroscience. Outside of the classroom, I also mentor student groups that focus broadly on awareness of neuroscience for students and general populations, via outreach and written media. As a neurodivergent, first-gen student myself, my interests are largely in support and mentorship of diverse students and making neuroscience learning spaces more accessible for all, including via communicating the science itself. 

I look forward to engaging with this group and beyond! This should be a lot of fun!