Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute


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  • Heather E. Moss, MD, PhD

    Heather E. Moss, MD, PhD

    Professor of Ophthalmology and of Neurology and Neurological Sciences

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsI am a clinician scientist with a background in engineering, epidemiology and neuro-ophthalmology. In my research, I combine tools from these disciplines with the goal of understanding and preventing vision loss from optic nerve diseases. My focus is on papilledema, the swelling of the optic nerve head due to elevation in intracranial pressure, which we are characterizing using electrophysiological and imaging techniques. Other areas of interest are peri-operative vision loss and optic neuritis.

  • Philippe Mourrain

    Philippe Mourrain

    Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Major Laboratories and Clinical Translational Neurosciences Incubator)

    BioExpertise: Neurobiology, Sleep sciences, Molecular Genetics, Developmental Biology, Gene Silencing/Epigenetics

    Methodology: Synapse Imaging (Two photon microscopy, Array Tomography), Calcium Imaging (Light Sheet Microscopy/SPIM, Light Field Microscopy), Optogenetics, CLARITY, Tol2 transgenesis, TALENs, CRISPR/Cas9, Video tracking and behavior computation.

  • Prithvi Mruthyunjaya, MD, MHS

    Prithvi Mruthyunjaya, MD, MHS

    Alan Adler Professor of Ophthalmology and Professor, by courtesy, of Radiation Oncology

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr Mruthyunjaya has maintained a broad research interest with publications in both ocular oncology and retinal diseases.
    His focus is on multi-modal imaging of ocular tumors and understanding imaging clues that may predict vision loss after ocular radiation therapy. He coordinates multi-center research on the role of genetic testing and outcomes of treatments of ocular melanoma.
    In the field of retinal diseases, his interests are in intra-operative imaging to enhance surgical accuracy.

  • David Myung, MD, PhD

    David Myung, MD, PhD

    Associate Professor of Ophthalmology and, by courtesy, of Chemical Engineering

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsNovel biomaterials to reconstruct the wounded cornea
    Mesenchymal stem cell therapy for corneal and ocular surface regeneration
    Engineered biomolecule therapies for promote corneal wound healing

    Telemedicine in ophthalmology

  • Claude M. Nagamine, DVM, PhD

    Claude M. Nagamine, DVM, PhD

    Associate Professor of Comparative Medicine

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMouse models to study murine and human infectious diseases. These colloborative studies include dengue virus, zika virus, adeno-associated virus, coxsackie virus, enterovirus 71, enterohepatic helicobacters, campylobacters, and anaplasma.

  • William Newsome

    William Newsome

    Harman Family Provostial Professor and Professor of Neurobiology and, by courtesy, of Psychology

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsNeural processes that mediate visual perception and visually-based decision making. Influence of reward history on decision making.

  • Quan Dong Nguyen, MD, MSc

    Quan Dong Nguyen, MD, MSc

    Professor of Ophthalmology and, by courtesy, of Pediatrics and of Medicine (Immunology & Rheumatology)

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWe have focused our research on the development of novel therapies and innovative assessment and diagnostic imaging technologies for retinal vascular and ocular inflammatory disorders, specifically diabetic retinopathy (DR), age-related macular degeneration (AMD) and uveitis. Building on our initial work describing the role of hypoxia and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in diabetic retinopathy (DR) and diabetic macular edema (DME), We have become interested in the biochemical mechanisms that would presumably lead to DME. During the past decade, our research has contributed to the body of evidences that defines the important role of anti-VEGF therapies in DME and AMD, as well as the role of the mTOR pathway and various interleukins in the pathogenesis of uveitis.

    We have launched a productive and well-funded clinical research program while at the same time providing clinical care to patients with uveitis and retinal vascular diseases and fulfilling significant teaching and administrative assignments. We have established a number of key collaborators both within and outside the institutions. In addition, we have also established Center in Baltimore and now in Silicon Valley, which has excelled in conducting proof-of concept, early-phase multi-center clinical trials and studies, exploring the clinical disease manifestations and the efficacy of various pharmacologic agents in retinal, uveitic, and ocular inflammatory disorders.

  • Anthony Norcia

    Anthony Norcia

    Professor (Research) of Psychology, Emeritus

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsVision, development, functional imaging, systems analysis

  • Paul Nuyujukian

    Paul Nuyujukian

    Assistant Professor of Bioengineering and of Neurosurgery

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur group explores neuroengineering and its application to both basic and clinical neuroscience. Our goal is to develop brain-machine interfaces as a platform technology for a variety of brain-related medical conditions including stroke and epilepsy.

  • Dáibhid Ó Maoiléidigh, PhD

    Dáibhid Ó Maoiléidigh, PhD

    Assistant Professor of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery (OHNS)

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe Ó Maoiléidigh group employs mathematical and computational approaches to better understand normal hearing and hearing impairment. Because complete restoration of auditory function by artificial devices or regenerative treatments will only be possible when experiments and computational modeling align, we work closely with experimental laboratories. Our goal is to understand contemporary experimental observations, to make experimentally testable predictions, and to motivate new experiments. We are pursuing several projects.

    Hair-Bundle Mechanics

    Auditory and balance organs rely on hair cells to convert mechanical vibrations into electrical signals for transmission to the brain. In response to the quietest sounds we can hear, the hair cell's mechanical sensor, the hair bundle, moves by less than one-billionth of a meter. To determine how this astounding sensitivity is possible, we construct computational models of hair-bundle mechanics. By comparing models with experimental observations, we are learning how a hair bundle's geometry, material properties, and ability to move spontaneously determine its function.

    Cochlear Mechanics

    The cochlea contains the auditory organ that houses the sensory hair cells in mammals. Vibrations in the cochlea arising from sound are amplified more than a thousandfold by the ear's active process. New experimental techniques have additionally revealed that the cochlea vibrates in a complex manner in response to sound. We use computational models to interpret these observations and to make hypotheses about how the cochlea works.

  • Lauren O'Connell

    Lauren O'Connell

    Associate Professor of Biology

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe O'Connell lab studies how genetic and environmental factors contribute to biological diversity and adaptation. We are particularly interested in understanding (1) how behavior evolves through changes in brain function and (2) how animal physiology evolves through repurposing existing cellular components.

  • Ruth O'Hara

    Ruth O'Hara

    Director, Spectrum, Senior Associate Dean, Research and Lowell W. and Josephine Q. Berry Professor

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsDr. O'Hara's research aims to investigate how cognitive information processing deficits subserve affective symptoms in psychiatric disorders, and interact with key brain networks integral to these disorders. To do so, she has implemented a translational, interdisciplinary program that encompasses cellular models, brain and behavioral assays of affective and cognitive information processing systems in psychiatric disorders across the lifespan.

  • Michelle Odden

    Michelle Odden

    Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Population Health

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMultilevel - from cells to society - epidemiologic study of healthy aging

  • Allison Okamura

    Allison Okamura

    Richard W. Weiland Professor in the School of Engineering and Professor of Mechanical Engineering

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research focuses on developing the principles and tools needed to realize advanced robotic and human-machine systems capable of physical interaction. Application areas include surgery, simulation and training, rehabilitation, prosthetics, neuromechanics, exploration of hazardous and remote environments (e.g. space), design, and education.

  • Derick Okwan

    Derick Okwan

    Assistant Professor of Pathology

    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.

  • Kunle Olukotun

    Kunle Olukotun

    Cadence Design Systems Professor, Professor of Electrical Engineering and of Computer Science

    BioKunle Olukotun is the Cadence Design Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Stanford University. Olukotun is a pioneer in multicore processor design and the leader of the Stanford Hydra chip multiprocessor (CMP) research project. He founded Afara Websystems to develop high-throughput, low-power multicore processors for server systems. The Afara multi-core processor, called Niagara, was acquired by Sun Microsystems and now powers Oracle's SPARC-based servers. In 2017, Olukotun co-founded SambaNova Systems, a Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence company, and continues to lead as their Chief Technologist.

    Olukotun is the Director of the Pervasive Parallel Lab and a member of the Data Analytics tor What's Next (DAWN) Lab, developing infrastructure for usable machine learning. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, an ACM Fellow, and an IEEE Fellow for contributions to multiprocessors on a chip design and the commercialization of this technology. He also received the Harry H. Goode Memorial Award.

    Olukotun received his Ph.D. in Computer Engineering from The University of Michigan.

  • Antonio Omuro, MD

    Antonio Omuro, MD

    Joseph D. Grant Professor

    BioDr. Antonio M. Omuro, MD, FAAN, is the Chair of the Department of Neurology and Neurological Sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine.

    Dr. Omuro is an internationally renowned neurologist and neuro-oncologist. Before assuming his role at Stanford, he held notable leadership positions at prestigious institutions including Yale University and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. His research endeavors are concentrated on clinical and translational studies, where he collaborates closely with basic scientists to pioneer innovative therapies for challenging neuro-oncologic diseases such as gliomas and primary CNS lymphomas. He is also a highly esteemed educator and practicing clinician, delivering state-of-the-art and compassionate care to patients with brain tumors and neurological complications of cancers.

  • Anthony Oro, MD, PhD

    Anthony Oro, MD, PhD

    Eugene and Gloria Bauer Professor

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsOur lab uses the skin to answer questions about epithelial stem cell biology, differentiation and carcinogenesis using genomics, genetics, and cell biological techniques. We have studied how hedgehog signaling regulates regeneration and skin cancer, and how tumors evolve to develop resistance. We study the mechanisms of early human skin development using human embryonic stem cells. These fundamentals studies provide a greater understanding of epithelial biology and novel disease therapeutics.

  • Michael Ostacher

    Michael Ostacher

    Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Public Mental Health and Population Sciences)

    BioDr. Ostacher is Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. He is the Site Director for the Addiction Medicine Fellowship at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System, where he also serves as the Medical Director of the Pharmacology of Addiction Recovery Clinic, the Director of the Bipolar and Depression Research Program and the Co-Director of the VA/Stanford Exploratory Therapeutics Lab, the Director of Advanced Fellowship Training in Mental Illness Research and Treatment for MDs for the VISN 21 MIRECC, and the Site Director at the VA Palo Alto for Advanced Fellowship Training for Stanford. A graduate of Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, the Harvard School of Public Health, and Harvard Medical School, he completed his training at The Cambridge Health Alliance at Harvard Medical School in Adult Psychiatry, Public Psychiatry, and Geriatric Psychiatry, and is currently board certified in Psychiatry, Addiction Psychiatry, and Addiction Medicine. He is the Digital Content Editor for the journal Evidence-Based Mental Health and is on the editorial boards of Bipolar Disorders, the International Journal of Bipolar Disorders, the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry, Current Psychiatry, and Psychiatric Annals. His current research includes roles as Site Investigator for VA-BRAVE, multicenter, randomized trial comparing long-acting injectable buprenorphine to sublingual buprenorphine/naloxone, and trials of psychedelic drugs in psychiatric disorders in Veterans. With funding from NIDA, he studied, along with Jaimee Heffner, Ph.D. at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, smoking cessation in people with bipolar disorder using a novel online psychotherapy derived from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. His work using a Capnometry Guided Respiratory Intervention (CGRI) for PTSD led to the FDA clearance for Freespira, a digital therapeutic, for the treatment of PTSD. His primary research interest is in large clinical trials mental health and addiction, and the implementation of evidence-based mental health practices.

  • Einar Ottestad

    Einar Ottestad

    Clinical Professor, Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsI have a strong interest in ultrasound for chronic pain management for diagnostics as well as therapeutics. I also have strong interest in acute pain in the hospital setting, including post-operative as well as cancer pain.

  • Nicholas Ouellette

    Nicholas Ouellette

    Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe Environmental Complexity Lab studies self-organization in a variety of complex systems, ranging from turbulent fluid flows to granular materials to collective motion in animal groups. In all cases, we aim to characterize the macroscopic behavior, understand its origin in the microscopic dynamics, and ultimately harness it for engineering applications. Most of our projects are experimental, though we also use numerical simulation and mathematical modeling when appropriate. We specialize in high-speed, detailed imaging and statistical analysis.

    Our current research includes studies of turbulence in two and three dimensions, with a focus on coherent structures and the geometry of turbulence; the transport of inertial, anisotropic, and active particles in turbulence; the erosion of granular beds by fluid flows and subsequent sediment transport; quantitative measurements of collective behavior in insect swarms and bird flocks; the stability of ocean ecosystems; neural signal processing; and uncovering the natural, self-organized spatiotemporal scales in urban systems.

  • Art Owen

    Art Owen

    Max H. Stein Professor

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsStatistical methods to analyze large data matrices in bioinformatics

  • Cholawat Pacharinsak, DVM, PhD

    Cholawat Pacharinsak, DVM, PhD

    Professor of Comparative Medicine

    BioCholawat Pacharinsak, DVM, PhD Associate Professor and Director of Anesthesia, Pain Management, and Surgery, at Stanford University’s Department of Comparative Medicine; he is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Anesthesia and Analgesia (DACVAA). He received his DVM from Chulalongkorn University, Thailand and trained in an Anesthesiology/Pain Management residency program and received his Master's degree at Washington State University. He completed his PhD in Comparative and Molecular Biosciences from the University of Minnesota. Prior to arriving at Stanford, Dr. Pacharinsak was a faculty member in Anesthesiology and Pain Management at Michigan State University and Purdue University; and served as a Clinical Specialist at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine. His research focuses on understanding the neurobiology of cancer pain, chemotherapeutic-induced peripheral neuropathy, acute surgical pain models, and methods to improve clinical pain management e.g. sustained release analgesics supporting refinement. Research methodology includes electrophysiologic and behavioral techniques.

  • Daniel Palanker, PhD

    Daniel Palanker, PhD

    Professor of Ophthalmology and, by courtesy, of Electrical Engineering

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsInteractions of electric field and light with biological cells and tissues and their applications to imaging, diagnostics, therapeutics and prosthetics, primarily in ophthalmology.
    Specific fields of interest:
    Electronic retinal prosthesis;
    Electronic enhancement of tear secretion;
    Electronic control of blood vessels;
    Interferometric imaging of neural signals;
    Interferometric imaging of cellular physiology

  • Theo Palmer

    Theo Palmer

    Professor of Neurosurgery, Emeritus

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMembers of the Palmer Lab study the biology of neural stem cells in brain development and in the adult. Our primary goal is to understand how genes and environment synergize in influencing stem cell behavior during development and how mild genetic or environmental risk factors for disease may synergize in their detrimental effects on brain development or in the risk of neuronal loss in age-related degenerative disease.

  • David J. Park, MD, PhD, FCNS

    David J. Park, MD, PhD, FCNS

    Clinical Assistant Professor, Neurosurgery

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe goal of our Laboratory is to improve patients’ care and outcomes by analyzing clinical data from thousands of patients treated at our institution. Our current primary areas of interest are benign tumors, brain and spine metastases, and neurogenetic disorders.
    Our lab is led by Dr. Steven D. Chang and Dr. David J. Park and proudly hosts talented young clinical scientists from around the world.
    Link: https://med.stanford.edu/neurosurgery/research/NeuroOncLab.html

  • Karen J. Parker, PhD

    Karen J. Parker, PhD

    Truong-Tan Broadcom Endowed Professor and Professor, by courtesy, of Comparative Medicine

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe Parker Lab conducts research on the biology of social functioning in monkeys, typically developing humans, and patients with social difficulties.

  • Sonia Partap

    Sonia Partap

    Clinical Professor, Pediatric Neurology
    Clinical Professor (By courtesy), Neurosurgery

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research interests involve the epidemiology, treatment and diagnosis of pediatric and young adult brain tumors. I am also interested in long-term neurologic effects and designing clinical trials to treat brain and spinal cord tumors.

  • Josef Parvizi, MD, PhD

    Josef Parvizi, MD, PhD

    Professor of Neurology and Neurological Sciences (Adult Neurology) and, by courtesy, of Neurosurgery

    BioDr. Parvizi completed his medical internship at Mayo Clinic, neurology training at Harvard, and subspecialty training in clinical neurophysiology and epilepsy at UCLA before joining the Department of Neurology and Neurological Sciences at Stanford in 2007. Dr. Parvizi directs the Stanford Program for Medication Resistant Epilepsies and specializes in surgical treatments of intractable focal epilepsies. Dr. Parvizi is the principal investigator in the Laboratory of Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience, where he leads a team of investigators to study the human brain. http://med.stanford.edu/parvizi-lab.html.

    Epilepsy patient story: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HXy-gXg0t94&t=3s

  • Anca M. Pasca, MD

    Anca M. Pasca, MD

    Assistant Professor of Pediatrics
    On Partial Leave from 01/05/2026 To 04/19/2026

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe research focus of the lab is to understand molecular mechanisms underlying neurodevelopmental disorders associated with premature birth, neonatal and fetal brain injury with the long-term goal of translating the lab’s findings into therapeutics. The research team employs a multidisciplinary approach involving genetics, molecular and developmental neurobiology, animal models and neural cells differentiated from patient-derived induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. In particular, the lab is using a powerful 3D human brain-region specific organoid system developed at Stanford (Nature Methods, 2015; Nature Protocols, 2018) to ask questions about brain injury during development.

    https://www.neopascalab.org/

  • Sergiu P. Pasca

    Sergiu P. Pasca

    Kenneth T. Norris, Jr. Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and Bonnie Uytengsu and Family Director of the Stanford Brain Organogenesis Program

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsA critical challenge in understanding the intricate programs underlying development, assembly and dysfunction of the human brain is the lack of direct access to intact, functioning human brain tissue for detailed investigation by imaging, recording, and stimulation.
    To address this, we are developing bottom-up approaches to generate and assemble, from multi-cellular components, human neural circuits in vitro and in vivo.
    We introduced the use of instructive signals for deriving from human pluripotent stem cells self-organizing 3D cellular structures named brain region-specific spheroids/organoids. We demonstrated that these cultures, such as the ones resembling the cerebral cortex, can be reliably derived across many lines and experiments, contain synaptically connected neurons and non-reactive astrocytes, and can be used to gain mechanistic insights into genetic and environmental brain disorders. Moreover, when maintained as long-term cultures, they recapitulate an intrinsic program of maturation that progresses towards postnatal stages.
    We also pioneered a modular system to integrate 3D brain region-specific organoids and study human neuronal migration and neural circuit formation in functional preparations that we named assembloids. We have actively applied these models in combination with studies in long-term ex vivo brain preparations to acquire a deeper understanding of human physiology, evolution and disease mechanisms.
    We have carved a unique research program that combines rigorous in vivo and in vitro neuroscience, stem cell and molecular biology approaches to construct and deconstruct previously inaccessible stages of human brain development and function in health and disease.
    We believe science is a community effort, and accordingly, we have been advancing the field by broadly and openly sharing our technologies with numerous laboratories around the world and organizing the primary research conference and the training courses in the area of cellular models of the human brain.

  • Chirag Patel, MD, PhD

    Chirag Patel, MD, PhD

    Member, Cardiovascular Institute

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsNeuro-oncology, Clinical Trials, Tumor Treating Fields (TTFields), Molecular/PET Imaging, Neuroimaging, Immunotherapy, Big Data Analysis

  • Zara M. Patel, MD

    Zara M. Patel, MD

    Professor of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery (OHNS) and, by courtesy, of Neurosurgery

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsCurrently performing research studies in Smell and Taste Disorders,Artificial Intelligence in Rhinology, Chronic Sinusitis and Endoscopic Sinus Surgery, Endoscopic Skull Base Surgery.

  • Margot Paul

    Margot Paul

    Clinical Assistant Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

    BioDr. Paul is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. She received her undergraduate degree from Tulane University where she graduated magna cum laude with departmental honors in psychology. She then received a master of science degree in behavioral health psychology the following year, after partaking in the 4+1 master's program. She graduated with her doctor of psychology degree from the PGSP-Stanford Psy.D. Consortium, where she won the award for Outstanding Overall Student (2021). She completed her clinical psychology doctoral internship at the Sepulveda VA in Los Angeles and her postdoctoral fellowship in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford School of Medicine.

    During her postdoctoral year she continued her research on using virtual reality (VR) as a method of engaging in behavioral activation for individuals with depression. Dr. Paul began her VR work in 2017 after joining Dr. Kim Bullock’s Virtual Reality-Immersive Technology Clinic & Laboratory in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences at Stanford School of Medicine. Dr. Paul won the Cheryl Koopman Dissertation of the Year Award for designing and implementing a feasibility study and three-arm pilot randomized controlled trial to examine the feasibility of using a VR headset as a way to administer behavioral activation therapy for participants with a diagnosis of major depressive disorder. She presented her past and ongoing research findings as a speaker at Shift Medical 2021: Virtual Medical XR Congress and Expo (2021), Stanford Psychiatry Grand Rounds (2022), IVRHA’s 7th Annual Virtual Reality and Healthcare Global Symposium (2023), VMed23 (2023), ADAA (2023), and CYPSY26 (2023). Dr. Paul has worked and consulted with VR companies and local Bay Area startups in the technology and mental health space. She has published on her virtual reality work.

    Clinically, she is interested in working with adults with anxiety and mood disorders, interpersonal difficulties, health-related difficulties, and/or perfectionistic tendencies. Dr. Paul has experience working with high-performance individuals, such as healthcare providers and student athletes. She practices using predominantly cognitive behavioral and dialectical behavioral therapies, but integrates various skills depending on the presentation and need of each unique individual.

  • John M. Pauly

    John M. Pauly

    Reid Weaver Dennis Professor

    BioInterests include medical imaging generally, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in particular. Current efforts are focused on medical applications of MRI where real-time interactive imaging is important. Two examples are cardiac imaging, and the interactive guidance of interventional procedures. Specific interests include rapid methods for the excitation and acquisition of the MR signal, and the reconstruction of images from the data acquired using these approaches.

  • Kim Butts Pauly

    Kim Butts Pauly

    Professor of Radiology (Radiological Sciences Lab) and, by courtesy, of Electrical Engineering

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsWe are investigating and developing, and applying focused ultrasound in neuromodulation, blood brain barrier opening, and ablation for both neuro and body applications.

  • Roy Pea

    Roy Pea

    Director, H-STAR, David Jacks Professor of Education and Professor, by courtesy, of Computer Science

    Current Research and Scholarly Interestslearning sciences focus on advancing theories, research, tools and social practices of technology-enhanced learning of complex domains

  • Jon-Paul Pepper, MD

    Jon-Paul Pepper, MD

    Associate Professor of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery (OHNS)

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsFacial paralysis is a debilitating condition that affects thousands of people. Despite excellent surgical technique, we are currently limited by the regenerative capacity of the body. The mission of our research is to identify new treatments that improve current facial paralysis treatments. We do this by exploring the regenerative cues that the body uses to restore tissue after nerve injury, in particular through pathways of neurogenesis and nerve repair in small mammals.

  • Claudia Katharina Petritsch

    Claudia Katharina Petritsch

    Associate Professor (Research) of Neurosurgery
    Senior Research Scientist, Adult Neurology

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe Petritsch lab broadly investigates underlying causes for the intra-tumoral heterogeneity and immune suppression in brain tumors from a neuro-developmental perspective. Defective cell fate decisions fuel the intra-humoral heterogeneity and plasticity in human brain tumors and may contribute to immune suppression. We use patient-derived models as avatars to study how brain cells control the fate of their progeny, whereby we unravel novel points of vulnerabilities in brain tumor cells.

  • Michael Adam Pfeffer

    Michael Adam Pfeffer

    Chief Information Officer, Stanford Health Care and Stanford School of Medicine, Associate Dean, Stanford School of Medicine, and Clinical Professor, Medicine
    Clinical Professor, Medicine

    BioMichael A. Pfeffer, MD, FACP serves as Chief Information Officer and Associate Dean for Stanford Health Care and Stanford University School of Medicine. Michael oversees Technology and Digital Solutions (TDS), responsible for providing world class technology solutions to Stanford Health Care and School of Medicine, enabling new opportunities for groundbreaking research, teaching, and compassionate care across two hospitals and over 150 clinics. TDS supports Stanford Medicine’s mission to improve human health through discovery and care and strategic priorities to be value focused, digitally driven, and uniquely Stanford.

    Michael is a Clinical Professor in the Department of Medicine and Division of Hospital Medicine with a joint appointment in the center for Biomedical Research (BMIR) in Stanford University School of Medicine. As such, Michael continues to provide clinical care as a Hospitalist Physician as well as teaching medical students and residents on the medicine inpatient wards.

    Prior to joining Stanford Medicine, Michael served as the Assistant Vice Chancellor and Chief Information Officer for UCLA Health Sciences. During his tenure, Michael served as the lead physician for the largest electronic health record “big bang” go-live of its time, encompassing over 26,000 users. Michael subsequently became the first Chief Medical Informatics Officer for UCLA Health before transitioning into the Chief Information Officer position. Under his leadership, UCLA Health IT achieved numerous industry awards including the HIMSS Analytics Stage 7 Inpatient, Ambulatory, and Analytics Certifications; the Most Wired designation for eight consecutive years; US News & World Report’s Most Connected Hospitals; the Top Master’s in Healthcare Administration 30 Most Technologically Advanced Hospitals in the World; and the prestigious HIMSS Davies Award. Michael also implemented of one of the first ACGME-accredited Clinical Informatics Fellowship Programs and served as its Associate Program Director.

    Michael has lectured worldwide on health information technology; served on the national HIMSS Physician Committee and as a HIMSS Stage 7 international site surveyor; and has published numerous peer-reviewed articles on health IT. Michael was featured in Becker’s Hospital Review as 10 physician CIOs to know and 12 standout healthcare CIOs and was one of LA’s top doctors in Los Angeles Magazine.

  • Suzanne Pfeffer

    Suzanne Pfeffer

    Emma Pfeiffer Merner Professor of Medical Sciences

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe major focus of our research is to understand the molecular basis of inherited Parkinson's Disease (PD). We focus on the LRRK2 kinase that is inappropriately activated in PD and how it phosphorylates Rab GTPases, blocking the formation of primary cilia in specific regions of the brain. The absence of primary cilia renders cells unable to carry out Hedgehog signaling that is critical for neuroprotective pathways that sustain dopamine neurons.

  • Harold Westley Phillips

    Harold Westley Phillips

    Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery (Pediatric Neurosurgery)

    BioH. Westley Phillips, MD is an Assistant Professor of Neurosurgery at Stanford University where he is a neurosurgeon-scientist specializing in pediatric neurosurgery with a special interest in epilepsy. Dr. Phillips received his undergraduate degree at Yale University where he was a member of the Varsity Football Team and received a Fulbright Scholarship. He completed an MD at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, graduating with a certificate of distinction in the Clinical Neuroscience Training Program. He completed neurosurgical residency at UCLA where he received 2 years of NIH funding to investigate the genetic underpinnings of epilepsy. He received fellowship training in pediatric epilepsy surgery and genetics research at Boston Children’s Hospital as well as pediatric neurosurgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh before his arrival at Stanford. At Stanford, Dr. Phillips leads a molecular genetics laboratory and has a particular interest in defining and further understanding somatic mosaicism and its role in epileptogenesis. He has published manuscripts in leading academic journals including Nature: Genetics, JAMA Neurology, Journal of Neuroscience, Scientific Reports, Epilepsia and Neurology. He is dedicated to improving the treatment and outcomes for children with drug resistant epilepsy through innovative research and cutting-edge surgical techniques.

  • Sharon Pitteri

    Sharon Pitteri

    Professor (Research) of Radiology (Diagnostic Sciences Laboratory)

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe Pitteri laboratory is focused on the discovery and validation of proteins that can be used as molecular indicators of risk, diagnosis, progression, and recurrence of cancer. Proteomic technologies, predominantly mass spectrometry, are used to identify proteins in the blood that are differentially regulated and/or post-translationally modified with disease state. Using human plasma samples, tumor tissue, cancer cell lines, and genetically engineered mouse models, the origins of these proteins are being investigated. A major goal of this research is to define novel molecular signatures for breast and ovarian cancers, including particular sub-types of these diseases. This laboratory is also focused on the identification of proteins with expression restricted to the surface of cancer cells which can be used as novel targets for molecular imaging technologies.

  • Tino Pleiner

    Tino Pleiner

    Assistant Professor of Molecular and Cellular Physiology

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsThe Pleiner lab combines mechanistic cell biology, structural biochemistry and protein engineering to dissect the pathways and molecular machines that mature human membrane proteins to a fully functional state. We also develop alpaca-derived and synthetic nanobodies as tools to modulate intracellular pathways that globally regulate protein homeostasis in health and disease.

  • Sylvia K. Plevritis, PhD

    Sylvia K. Plevritis, PhD

    William M. Hume Professor in the School of Medicine, Professor of Biomedical Data Science and of Radiology

    Current Research and Scholarly InterestsMy research program focuses on computational modeling of cancer biology and cancer outcomes. My laboratory develops stochastic models of the natural history of cancer based on clinical research data. We estimate population-level outcomes under differing screening and treatment interventions. We also analyze genomic and proteomic cancer data in order to identify molecular networks that are perturbed in cancer initiation and progression and relate these perturbations to patient outcomes.