Neurosurgery
Showing 1-20 of 52 Results
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Salaar Ahmed
Postdoctoral Scholar, Neurosurgery
BioSalaar Ahmed, MD, is a Postdoctoral Research Scholar in the Ramayya Lab within the Department of Neurological Surgery at Stanford University School of Medicine. His research focuses on the mechanisms and novel treatments of chronic and cancer-related pain, neuromodulation, disorders of consciousness, and global neurosurgery.
Dr. Ahmed earned his MD from Aga Khan University in January 2026, graduating summa cum laude, with a record 18 university awards and 15 honors. His early research focused on Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG), pediatric neuro-oncology, and global neurosurgical outcomes under the mentorship of Dr. Ather Enam and Dr. Naureen Mushtaq. He also collaborated on research projects with investigators from the University of Minnesota, the University of Wisconsin–Madison, and Mayo Clinic Rochester.
Beyond his academic work, Dr. Ahmed served as President of the student wing of Child Protection Services (CPS) at Aga Khan University Hospital. As a high school student, he founded Masoom Jaan, a community initiative that positively impacted the lives of more than 1,000 children in Rahim Yar Khan, his hometown in Pakistan. He later co-founded the Student Neurosurgery and Oncology Research Consortium (SNORC), an international mentorship and research initiative that has connected medical students with neurosurgical faculty mentors and expanded access to research opportunities across multiple countries. In addition, Salaar has worked extensively on HIV stigma and public health research, focusing on the MSM and transgender communities, and continues to collaborate with investigators at Aga Khan University.
Dr. Ahmed has presented his work at numerous international scientific meetings, including the Congress of Neurological Surgeons (CNS), the American Association of Neurological Surgeons (AANS), the Society for Neuro-Oncology (SNO), and the International AIDS Conference. -
Pankaj Gupta
Postdoctoral Scholar, Neurosurgery
BioPankaj Gupta is a postdoctoral researcher at Stanford University working at the intersection of systems neuroscience, neuroengineering, and computational modeling. His research focuses on understanding how distributed neural circuits generate behavior and how these circuits reorganize during learning and recovery, particularly in the context of motor control and neurological disorders such as stroke.
Pankaj completed his Ph.D. at the University of British Columbia, where he investigated brain–behavior dynamics using widefield and two-photon calcium imaging in mice. His work combined experimental neuroscience with real-time closed-loop systems, enabling the modulation of neural activity through behaviorally contingent feedback. He also developed computational tools and biologically inspired recurrent neural network models to capture large-scale neural dynamics and inter-regional interactions.
At Stanford, his research expands to include large-scale electrophysiology using Neuropixels probes to study cerebellar and subcortical circuits involved in motor control and recovery. He is particularly interested in how neural populations across multiple brain regions coordinate and adapt following injury, and how these insights can inform the design of closed-loop neurostimulation and brain–machine interface systems. -
Prashant Hariharan
Postdoctoral Scholar, Neurosurgery
BioPrashant Hariharan is a biomedical engineer specializing in the design of "fit-for-purpose" in vitro models to study neurological disorders. He earned his B.E. from the University of Mumbai, an M.S. from the University of Texas at Arlington, an M.Eng. from Cornell University and a PhD from Wayne State University. His doctoral work with Dr. Carolyn A. Harris focused on developing an "organ-chip" model of the choroid plexus to study how cerebrospinal fluid secretion is affected by hydrocephalus. As a postdoctoral scholar in the Fame lab, Prashant is adding new layers of physiological complexity to his previous model to investigate how the body’s circadian clock regulates choroid plexus-driven cerebrospinal fluid production and composition. This work aspires to deliver model-driven insights that can be translated into CSF-centric therapies and ultimately advance the pursuit of precision medicine for brain health.
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Duc Tan Huynh
Postdoctoral Scholar, Neurosurgery
BioAs a cell biologist interested in neuroscience, I am fascinated about the molecular basis of nervous system disorders that reveal therapeutic targets and/or biomarkers. My long-term research goal is to identify strategies that revert dysregulation in aging or neurodegeneration. For my postdoctoral training in the Zuchero lab (Neurosurgery), I will investigate how myelination, an essential developmental process, contributes to intelligence and neurodegeneration at the biochemical, cellular, and physiological level. I received my BSc at UCLA and my PhD at Duke University.
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Vanessa W.Y. Kan
Postdoctoral Scholar, Neurosurgery
BioI am a second-year postdoctoral researcher in Irene Llorente’s laboratory at the Department of Neurosurgery. I completed my Ph.D. at the Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences GSN-LMU in Munich, Germany, where I was trained as a circuit neuroscientist. During my doctoral work, I focused on dissecting the circuit mechanisms underlying cortical hyperexcitability in ALS, uncovering the pathophysiological role of hyper-responsive layer 2⁄3 neurons (one of the main inputs to layer 5) in the disease course. Currently, my research bridges circuit neuroscience, stem cell biology, and bioinformatics to explore mechanisms of neural repair and regeneration. I utilize advanced experimental and computational tools, including in vivo calcium imaging in awake, freely behaving rodents; machine learning-based motion sequencing (MoSeq); anterograde and retrograde viral tracing techniques; and transplantation of iPSC-derived glial-enriched progenitors and cortical interneurons. In parallel, I apply spatial transcriptomics and single-cell RNA sequencing to map cell-type–specific interactions and molecular signatures during neural circuit remodeling.
My research focuses on understanding the circuit mechanisms underlying neurological conditions such as stroke and identifying how cell-based therapies mediate repair. The ultimate goal of my work is to uncover molecular and cellular processes that promote graft–host integration and functional recovery, paving the way for next-generation regenerative therapies for the injured brain.
In addition to translational research, I am also passionate about scientific education and outreach. I mentor community college students twice a year through the Stanford Science Small Group, in which I share my own experience in research and guide them through the research process. To expand my outreach efforts, in the past summer, I collaborated with Invent Your Own Future as well as The Hong Kong Polytechnic University and organized a summer camp on Neuroscience x AI research for over 20 high school students in Hong Kong.
