Neuroscience Research Team

The Cook Children's Neurosciences Research team is made up of some of brightest minds in the world. Led by Dr. Christos Papadelis, our team is intent on leading the way in neurological breakthroughs to improve the lives of every child cared for at Cook Children's, and beyond.

Director

Meet the Neuroscience Research Team | Cook Children's

cristos-papdelis

Director of Research: Christos Papadelis, Ph.D.

Director of Research, Jane and John Justin Neurosciences Center,
Cook Children's Health Care System
Professor of Research in Bioengineering, University of Texas at Arlington
Professor of Pediatrics, Texas Christian University School of Medicine

I was born in Athens, Greece, and raised in Thessaloniki, the city of Alexander the Great. I graduated from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in 1998 with the Diploma in Electrical Engineering and received my MSc and PhD in Medical Informatics in 2001 and 2005 respectively from the same institution. After my PhD graduation, I worked as Research Scientist at the Brain Science Institute of RIKEN, Japan, from 2005 to 2008, and as Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in the Center for Mind/Brain Sciences at University of Trento, Italy, from 2008 to 2011.

Back in 2011, I received my first faculty appointment as Instructor in Neurology at Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, and joined Boston Children's Hospital in order to set up and develop the BabyMEG facility as its manager, one of the very few magnetoencephalography (MEG) laboratories in the world fully dedicated to pediatric research. In 2015, I was promoted to Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and initiated the Laboratory of Children's Brain Dynamics. Later, I became the founding Director of the Clinical MEG Program at Boston Children's Hospital, the only MEG program in the USA for children up to 4 years of age. In 2019, I moved from Boston to Fort Worth/Dallas metroplex to join Cook Children's Health Care System as founding Director of Research at the Jane and John Justin Neurosciences Center. I also joined the Texas Christian University School of Medicine, and the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA) as Professor of Research in Bioengineering.

My research covers a broad range of studies in neuroscience, clinical neurophysiology, and biomedical engineering. My main goal is to develop a novel epilepsy biomarker that will help children with drug resistant epilepsy to become seizure free after resective neurosurgery. I also work with children who have cerebral palsy to identify plasticity changes in their brain as a result of robotic rehabilitation.

I have more than 80 peer-reviewed research investigation articles, a patent, and numerous articles in conference proceedings. In half of the peer-reviewed research articles I am either first or last author. I am a member of the editorial board of Scientific Reports and PLoS One, ad-hoc reviewer in more than 50 journals, as well as guest editor in special issues in my field. Figures of my work have been selected as covers for scientific journals. I have received funding from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, the American Epilepsy Society, the European Union, the Harvard Medical School, the Boston Children's Hospital, and the Cook Children's Health Foundation, and the pharmaceutical industry.

MyNCBI: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=Papadelis+C*%5BAuthor%5D&sort=pubdate
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=ZVgaTBgAAAAJ&hl=en
Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Christos_Papadelis2
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christos-papadelis-29616730/

Principal Investigators

gAlexandrakis

Principal Investigator: Georgios Alexandrakis, Ph.D.

Associate Professor of Bioengineering, University of Texas at Arlington

I grew up in Athens, Greece, and had my primary and secondary educations at Athens College. Subsequently I attended Oxford University in the UK where I completed a BSc degree in Physics in 1992. Following an obligatory stint in the Greek military service, I moved to Canada, where I pursued MSc and PhD degrees in Medical Physics at McMaster University. During my graduate studies I learned a lot about light-tissue interactions that formed a solid basis for a future career in optical medical technologies, although I did not know that at the time. A chance encounter with a friend led me to apply for a green card and get it at first try, which brought me to the US in 2000.

I was a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital / Harvard Medical School where I worked on quantitative intravital two-photon microscopy techniques for the analysis of barriers to drug delivery in tumor-bearing mice. I then pursued further Post-Doctoral work at UCLA where I contributed to the development of a combined optical/PET mouse imaging system.

I have been a faculty member of the Bioengineering Department at University of Texas at Arlington since 2006, where I am currently an Associate Professor. In my initial years as faculty I collaborated with scientists at UT Southwestern to investigate the dynamics of proteins involved in cancer pathways by use of quantitative confocal and two-photon cellular microscopy. In the last decade, I have been actively pursuing projects involving the technological development and clinical dissemination of functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy (fNIRS). This work involved the application of fNIRS for guiding rehabilitation in children with cerebral palsy and personalized neurostimulation of patients with stroke.

I have published many peer-reviewed research articles and numerous articles in conference proceedings. I am reviewer for several biomedical optics journals, and a frequent grant reviewer in the US and Europe. My work has been supported by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Center of Child Health and Human Development, The National Cancer Institute, The Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas, the National Science Foundation, the Cerebral Palsy Foundation, and Texas Health Resources.

Crystal M. Cooper, PhD

Principal Investigator: Crystal M. Cooper, Ph.D.

Principal Investigator, Jane and John Justin Neurosciences Center,
Cook Children's Health Care System
Adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, UT Southwestern
Adjunct Faculty of Bioengineering, University of Texas at Arlington

Originally from San Diego, California, I moved to Texas and pursued higher education in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex. I received my BS (2007) in Psychology, with a minor in Biology, from UT Arlington. I then received my MSc (2009) and PhD (2012) in Experimental Psychology with an emphasis in Health Psychology and Neuroscience, also from UT Arlington. During my graduate training, my research was two-fold: (i) developing tasks to objectively measure specific cognitive processes (i.e., memory deficits and editing mechanisms), in special populations across the lifespan; and (ii) objectively measuring brain and behavioral dysfunction in veterans with Gulf War Illness using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Following graduate training, I took a Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship in Psychiatry at UT Southwestern Medical Center. My work focused on overseeing a nationwide, multisite, clinical trial to identify early predictors of treatment response in major depressive disorders. This included implementing novel neuroimaging methods. In 2016, I was appointed Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at UT Southwestern. As a cognitive neuroscientist and investigator in the Center for Depression Research and Clinical Care, I served as the head of Brain and Behavior Research. My work focused on identifying biosignatures of disease-risk, disease-state, and treatment prediction in psychopathology across the lifespan. In this work, I implemented staple and novel functional neuroimaging and behavioral phenotyping methods in clinical trial, cross-sectional, and longitudinal studies alike.

In 2020, I joined the Jane and John Justin Neurosciences Center at Cook Children's Health Care System as a Principal Investigator. I also remain an adjunct Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at UT Southwestern Medical Center. My work is two-fold: (i) augmenting the current research in neurological pediatric populations (e.g., epilepsy and cerebral palsy) with MRI and behavioral phenotyping; and (ii) extend the center's work into pediatric psychopathology (e.g., mood and anxiety disorders).

I have 40 peer-reviewed articles and a book chapter published as well as numerous conference articles. I have received awards for my work, which include: the Verne Cox Outstanding Research Award (UT Arlington), Best in Translational Research (National Network of Depression Centers), New Investigator Award (American Society for Clinical Psychopharmacology), and Rising Star (Society of Biological Psychiatry). I am an ad-hoc reviewer for several journals and member in national and international scientific societies, where I serve actively on committees. I have received seed/pilot funding from UT Southwestern.

MyNCBI: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/1hkCT-gj9UH57/bibliography/public/
Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Crystal_Cooper2
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/crystal-cooper-ph-d-254366104/

Post-Doctoral Research Fellows

Mozhde Askari, M.D.

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

I was born and raised in Iran (Persia), where I earned my MD degree in 2019 from Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. My journey into the fascinating world of neurology research began as a medical student in 2015. I actively participated in clinical trials that focused on CNS disorders, specifically multiple sclerosis, which led to the publication of several articles.

In 2022, I embarked on a new chapter in the USA when I joined the Neurology Department at Thomas Jefferson University Hospitals as a research scholar. During this time, my focus was on neuroimmunological diseases like multiple sclerosis and neuromyelitis optica and potential pathological markers. I have expanded my knowledge of translational research throughout this period.

My passion for clinical trials in neurology led me to my current role as a postdoctoral research fellow at the Jane and John Justin Neuroscience Center. I am thrilled to contribute to the team's efforts in studying the sucking and feeding activity of infants at high risk of neurological impairment, using HD-EEG, MRI, and DTI, and correlate it with their underlying neurological impairment for the early diagnosis of brain injury.

When I'm not studying, I stay active with exercise, travel, and contribute to public health through volunteering. I remain committed to making a positive impact beyond the research world.

Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=dnHKKxIAAAAJ&hl=en
Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Mozhde-Askari

Ludovica Corona

Ludovica Corona, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

I was born in Rome, Italy. I obtained both my bachelor's degree (BSc) in industrial engineering in 2017 and a master's degree (MSc) in biomedical engineering with biorobotics and bionics specialization in 2020 at the Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma. I completed my MSc thesis in 2019 during the three-month work period spent at the Boston Children's Hospital (Boston, MA) under the supervision of Dr. Christos Papadelis and Dr. Eleonora Tamilia. In September 2020, I moved to Arlington, TX and started my Ph.D., in biomedical engineering at the University of Texas at Arlington under the guidance of my mentor Dr. Christos Papadelis, who offered me the extraordinary opportunity to continue doing research on pediatric epilepsy. I received my Ph.D., in biomedical engineering in December 2023, and I have been working as a post-doctoral research fellow since then. My main research projects investigate the role of drug-resistant epilepsy as noninvasive biomarkers of the epileptogenic zone. In my free time, I enjoy spending time with my friends and family, watching movies, reading books, traveling and having walks on weekends. I have an unconditional love for dogs and my cat. My motto is to always believe in yourself.

Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=ZBIWUcQAAAAJ
Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ludovica-Corona-2

Ioannis Ntoumanis

Ioannis Ntoumanis, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

I graduated from the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in 2018 with a BSc in Mathematics and earned my MSc in Statistics and Modeling from the same university in 2020 with a highest ranking graduate award.

At that time, I came across David Eagleman's documentary series, “The Brain”, and neuroscience became my calling! I went to the University of Cambridge in England for a research internship, where I used functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to explore attentional processes and the default mode network of the brain. Afterward, I moved to Moscow, Russia to earn the first-ever PhD degree in Cognitive Science in the country. Working in the International Laboratory for Social Neurobiology at HSE University, I contributed to projects spanning from cognitive to clinical neuroscience. While pursuing my PhD, I visited Aalto University in Finland as an intern, where I practiced machine learning in neuroimaging. My involvement in a project investigating embodied cognition in children with Arthrogryposis Multiplex Congenita motivated me to dedicate myself to clinical neuroscience.

Thus, I joined Cook Children's and University of Texas at Arlington as a Post-Doctoral Associate in January 2024. My research now focuses on mapping the eloquent cortex in presurgical evaluation of drug-resistant epilepsy. I use magnetoencephalography (MEG), high-density electroencephalography (HD-EEG), as well as fMRI.

I have published several peer-reviewed research articles, presented my findings at international conferences, and I am an ad-hoc reviewer. I also hold a patent, granted in 2023, for a graphical user interface (GUI) toolbox facilitating multivariate pattern analysis of EEG data collected during naturalistic stimulation.

In my downtime, you'll find me over a chessboard or enjoying quality time with my wife.

Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=OuslAN8AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao
Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ioannis-Ntoumanis

Hmayag Partamian

Hmayag Partamian, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

I was born in Beirut, Lebanon. I obtained my Bachelor of Engineering in electrical, electronics, and computer engineering with a specialization in telecommunications from the Lebanese university in 2005. After working briefly in Lebanon developing data management tools, I moved to the United Arab Emirates for three years working as a mathematics and computer science teacher at SABIS® International School of Choueifat in Sharjah. I then decided to pursue my Master of Science in computational sciences at the American University of Beirut, where I received a full scholarship. I focused my studies on artificial intelligence for oil and gas exploratory multichannel data and I graduated in 2014. I then worked on diverse projects in Qatar and Lebanon developing tools for video analysis using distributed computing and optimizing building shapes to reduce power consumption. I joined the dynamic cardiodiagnostics team as a complex analytics engineer where I developed heart monitoring algorithms to detect rhythms and abnormalities. I obtained my doctorate in electrical and computer engineering from the American University of Beirut in January 2023. I studied and developed diverse methodologies to evaluate multichannel EEG data for seizure analysis using modern signal processing techniques, mathematical modeling, and machine learning techniques. I joined the Cook Children's Neuroscience Research Center Team to further develop the application of artificial intelligence and deep learning techniques to help children suffering from drug resistant epilepsy.

MyNCBI: hmayagpartamian@orcid
Google Scholar: Hmayag Partamian https://scholar.google.com/citations?hl=en&user=mNAU_UcAAAAJ
Research Gate: Hmayag Partamian https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Hmayag-Partamian
LinkedIn: Hmayag Partamian https://www.linkedin.com/in/hmayag-partamian-b4b350a5

Sadra Shahdadian

Sadra Shahdadian, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Research Fellow

I was born and raised in Esfahan, Iran. I received my Bachelor of Science in 2012 and my Master of Science in 2017 in mechanical engineering, specializing in energy conversion. My interest in medical applications of mechanics led me to work on thermal effects of high intensity focused ultrasound on the brain as part of his master's thesis. In 2018, I moved to the United States and joined the doctoral program in the Department of Bioengineering at the University of Texas at Arlington. My research focused on investigating the effects of photobiomodulation on the brain's hemodynamic, metabolic, and electrophysiological connectivity. I published several peer-reviewed papers and presented my work in national seminars and conferences, receiving the outstanding bioengineering Ph.D., student scholarship award in 20118 and 2021. As part of the Neurosciences Research Center team, I study brain plasticity in children with cerebral palsy and other movement disorders. I use multimodal neuroimaging techniques, providing insights to the development of innovative neurorehabilitation interventions.

MyNCBI: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=sadra+shahdadian
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=nYwY5C4AAAAJ&hl=en
Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Sadra_Shahdadian
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sadra-shahdadian/

Research Assistants

Eryn Armstrong

Eryn Armstrong, M.S.

Research Assistant

I was born and raised in Mount Pleasant, Texas about two hours northeast of Fort Worth. After graduating from high school in 2017, I went to Texas A&M University (Gig ‘em Ags). I earned both my B.S. in Biology (2021) and my M.S. in Kinesiology with an emphasis in Motor Neuroscience (2023). While completing my undergraduate studies, I worked as a Physical Therapy Technician at a local clinical specializing in head and spine rehabilitation. It was during this time that I became interested in neurological disorders and what can be done to efficiently and effectively rehabilitate those diagnosed.

During my masters, I worked with various noninvasive brain stimulation techniques such as transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). My thesis research focused on the influences of tDCS on perception and action dynamics following motor skill training. Additionally, I was able to travel and present my thesis at the 2023 Neural Control of Movement conference in Victoria, BC, Canada upon receiving a grant from the Huffines Institute at Texas A&M University. Upon graduation I was designated as the Distinguished Honor Graduate for the School of Education and Human Development. I also worked as Graduate Teaching Assistant for a senior level motor control and learning lab.

My main focus as part of the Jane and John Justin Neurosciences Research Center Team at Cook Children's will be on the movement disorders projects. When not at work, I enjoy spending time with my dog, Gunner, and reading lots of books.

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/eryn-armstrong-89298b1a2

Samantha Laboy

Samantha Laboy, M.S.

Research Assistant

I was born in Ponce, Puerto Rico. I received my BS in Biomedical Engineering (2020) and MS in Biomedical Engineering with a focus on Nanotechnology (2023) from The University of Texas at Arlington. I was an NIH Research Fellow (T32) from 2021-2023 focusing on cardiovascular nanotechnology. Under the supervision of Dr. Lee and Dr. Nguyen I was able to perform my graduate research. My research focused on the identification of novel therapeutic strategies for cardiovascular diseases involving genetic editing using CRISPR-cas9 system, mainly for congenital heart diseases. In 2023, I joined the Cook Children's Neuroscience Research team as a Research Assistant shifting research focus to Epilepsy research. During my free time, I love to paint and create.

MyNCBI: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/samantha.laboy-segarra.1/bibliography/public/
Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Samantha-Laboy
LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/slaurenlaboy

Mally Townsend

Mally Townsend, B.S.

Research Assistant

I was born and raised in DFW and graduated from the University of Texas at Austin in 2023 with a Bachelor's in Neuroscience and an evidence and inquiry certificate. I loved my time in Austin, and I was fortunate to be involved in numerous research projects which sparked my passion for the field.

Most notably, I completed my interdisciplinary senior thesis for the Polymathic Scholars honors program entitled “Implementing a Democratic Teaching Method in Ballet Classrooms.” My thesis combined the fields of education, dance, and neuroscience to work towards reforming historically authoritarian-like ballet teaching methods to be more student focused and individualized. This democratic teaching method better reflects 21^st century evidence-based academic teaching methods. My thesis experience was particularly special to me, because I was able improve my research skills as well as my love for ballet, which I stopped pursuing pre professionally when I began college.

I was also a Health Leadership Apprentice at UT Austin's Dell Medical School, where I had the opportunity to work as a neuropsychology research assistant studying cognition in older adults. Specifically, we studied how performance variability between different neuropsychological cognitive assessments predicts cognitive decline and possible early stages of dementing conditions. This apprenticeship also gave me the opportunity to work on a team to research and inform the Austin community about the public health effects of black mold on health- which is a health housing condition crisis that affects a large population in the Austin community. I also participated in UT Austin's Freshman Research Initiative, where I worked on an organic chemistry drug-repurposing project, and was a general chemistry teaching assistant for 2 years.

I just joined Dr. Papadelis' Neurosciences Research team in January 2024, and am beyond excited to be part of this wonderful team and contribute to the mission of Cook Childrens.

LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/mally-townsend-3777b1214

Ph.D. Students

lFabbri

Lorenzo Fabbri

Ph.D. Student
University of Texas at Arlington

I was born in Cesena, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. After graduating from high school in 2014, I moved to Borger, Texas, where I attended the Frank Phillips College and received my Associate Degree in Science in 2016. In 2018, I transferred to the University of Texas at Arlington where I obtained my BSc in Biomedical Engineering. I am currently a PhD student at the University of Texas at Arlington under the supervision of Dr. Papadelis conducting research on pediatric epilepsy. The main goal of my research is to develop an epilepsy biomarker which is based on high frequency oscillations in order to help children with drug resistant epilepsy to become seizure free after neurosurgery. In my free time, I love cooking, travelling, doing sports, and spending time with my dog.

sJahromi

Saeed Jahromi

PhD Student
University of Texas at Arlington

I was born and raised in Shiraz, Iran, the city of poets and love. Having been raised in a full-of-engineers family, I was always obsessed with various interesting matters regarding pumps and engines. I was exhorted to join the Mechanical Engineering program of University of Tehran. After my graduation, I got accepted to the Mechanical Engineering program of Amirkabir University of Technology. Fascinated by the devices physicians use to work with, I decided to focus my studies on bioengineering technologies, especially in the fields of drug delivery and microfluidics. In 2019, I joined the PhD program of the Department of Bioengineering at University of Texas at Arlington. Soon after starting rotations in medical imaging labs, I settled with Dr. Papadelis and his neuroscience center, not only because the lab's research is in line with my passion, but also because it promotes the wellness of children. My research goal is to develop algorithms that will help us map the propagating epileptiform activity in the brains of children with epilepsy.

kKing

Kathryn King

PhD Student
University of Texas at Arlington

I was born in Fort Worth, Texas. While attending a Biomedical Academy in high school, I developed a passion for neuroscience. After graduation, I moved to Dallas, Texas to attend the University of Texas at Dallas. I volunteered in a neuroscience research lab for two years and went on to receive my BSc in Psychology, with a minor in Neuroscience, in 2018. I continued my education at the same university, working in a psychology research lab for two years, and earning my MSc in Psychological Sciences, with a Neuroscience focus, in 2020. I am passionate about neuroscience research and was excited to join the PhD program in Bioengineering at the University of Texas at Arlington in the Fall of 2020. In my free time, I enjoy playing video games, cooking, and spending time with my friends and my cats.

mMatarrese

Margherita A. G. Matarrese

PhD Student
University Campus Bio-Medico of Rome

I was born in Stigliano, Basilicata, Italy. After completion of high school in my born place in 2014, I moved to Rome, Lazio, Italy, where I attended the Campus Bio-Medico University of Rome and received firstly my BSc in Industrial Engineering in 2017 and also my MSc in Biomedical Engineering, with Biorobotic and Bionic curriculum, in 2020. In 2019, I spent three months at Boston Children's Hospital to work at my Master thesis under the supervision of Drs. Tamilia and Papadelis. This extremely educational experience made me understand that I want to continue researching in the field of neuroscience to try to improve children's health. Since November 2020 I have been a PhD student at Campus Bio-Medico University of Rome in cooperation with the Jane and John Justin Neurosciences Center of Cook Children's Hospital under the supervision of Prof. Filippi and Dr. Papadelis conducting research on pediatric epilepsy. The main purpose of my research is to investigate how to make high frequency oscillations and their propagation on cortex a relevant epilepsy biomarker in order to improve the localization of the epileptogenic zone localization in children with drug-resistant epilepsy. In my free time, I like to cook, spend time with my dogs and cats, read a good book and try new electronic devices because technology is the future.

sRijal

Sakar Rijal

PhD Student
University of Texas at Arlington

I was born in Laps of Himalayas, Kathmandu, Nepal. After completion of my high school education I moved to Chennai, India, where I got my BSc in Biomedical Engineering from Satyabama University. After my graduation in 2017, I worked as an Application Engineer for Leica Microsystems and Karl Storz in Nepal. At this time, I developed interest towards neuroscience and neurosurgeries. I joined University of Texas at Arlington in 2019 as a PhD student in the Department of Bioengineering, under the mentorship of Drs. Alexandrakis and Papadelis, where I received the Dr. Franklyn Alexander Outstanding Bioengineering PhD Student Scholarship Award. My research project is on the development of functional connectivity tools for the delineation of the epileptogenic zone in children with medically refractory epilepsy. I like to travel, hike, and listen to music. I am a soccer enthusiast; I spend my free time playing soccer and I am an avid supporter of Liverpool Football club.

Glykeria Sdoukopoulou

PhD Student
University of Texas at Arlington

I was born and raised in Veroia, Greece. I obtained my diploma in Electrical and Computer Engineering (Integrated Master's Degree) from the Technical University of Crete. After graduation, I worked as a research engineer at the same laboratory I conducted my thesis (Digital Image and Signal Processing Laboratory). I obtained an MSc in Cognitive Neuroscience specializing in Natural Computing and Neurotechnology from the Radboud University in the Netherlands. In parallel, I worked as a teaching and research assistant. I am a Ph.D., student at the University of Texas at Arlington, under the supervision of Dr. Papadelis, conducting research on pediatric epilepsy.

Behnam Ghabel

PhD Student
University of Texas at Arlington

Born in Tabriz, Iran, I embarked on an academic journey marked by dedication and achievement. I earned a MSc in Clinical Psychology from the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences (USWR), Tehran in 2021, following a BSc in Psychology at PNU in 2018. During my master's studies, I served as a department manager at the prestigious Atieh Clinical Neuroscience Center (ACNC), where my fascination with noninvasive brain stimulation techniques such as TMS and tDCS deepened. I also explored advanced brain imaging methods, including EEG, pivotal for developing innovative neurorehabilitation interventions. I hold patents for two groundbreaking devices: the Portable Neuroprosthetic Device for Functional Transcutaneous-Transcranial Electrical Stimulation for Rehabilitation of Neurological Patients with Motor Dysfunctions, and the Portable and Automatic Neurofeedback Device with Capability of transcranial Electrical Stimulation. In May 2024, I relocated to Arlington, Texas to pursue a Ph.D., in biomedical engineering at the University of Texas at Arlington (UTA). Under the mentorship of Prof. Christos Papadelis, Ph.D., at UTA, and as a member of the Jane and John Justin Institute for Mind Health at Cook Children's, my current work delves into assessing disease-induced alterations in brain structures and functions of children with cerebral palsy (CP) and other movement disorders using advanced techniques such as HD-EEG, MRI, MEG, DTI and TMS. Outside academia, I enjoy traveling, sports and spending quality time with friends.

Alireza Vaysi

PhD Student
University of Texas at Arlington

I was born in 1998 in Kermanshah, Iran. I completed my Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering at Razi University in September 2020. Following my undergraduate studies, I pursued a Master of Science in Biomedical Engineering at Amirkabir University of Technology, graduating in March 2023. During my master's program, I focused on constructing ordinal partition networks based on the Poincare section of chaotic biological signals to investigate obstructive sleep apnea (OSA). My research passion lies in developing and applying mathematical and engineering methods to help people and contribute to the medical community. For me, pursuing a Ph.D., is about exploring new aspects of life and research and challenging myself in different ways. Ultimately, my goal is to improve the lives of pediatric patients.

Alumni

rChikara

Rupesh Kumar Chikara, Ph.D.

Post-Doctoral Research Fellow I

I was born in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh, India. I received my BSc in Biology (2005) and MSc in Botany (2007) from Maharaj Singh College, Saharanpur, Ch. Charan Singh University, Meerut, India. I received my Master of Technology in Biotechnology (2011) from Meerut Institute of Engineering and Technology (MIET), Gautum Buddh Technical University, Lucknow, India. I received my PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Biological Science and Technology, National Chiao Tung University (NCTU), Hsinchu, Taiwan, 2013-2019. My PhD thesis was on neural mechanisms and classification in human inhibition. I was actively involved in three research projects that included human response inhibition with a simultaneous fMRI-EEG study, Parkinson's disease patients with repetitive TMS and EEG, vestibular dysfunction patients with tDCS and EEG study. I have received the “Reward for Outstanding Student Research Results” in 2019, “Academic Excellence Achievement Award” in 2020, and the Phi Tau Phi Scholastic Honor Society of the Republic of China by National Chiao Tung University, Taiwan. I am ad-hoc reviewer in IEEE Access, IEEE TNSRE, and Neural Plasticity journals.

I joined Cook Children's and University of Texas at Arlington as a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow I in December 2020. My research at Cook Children's focuses on the development of an epilepsy biomarker for the delineation of the epileptogenic zone using Independent Component Analysis (ICA) on EEG and MEG recordings, as well as functional connectivity and machine learning techniques.

MyNCBI: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/?term=Chikara+RK
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=bnqO_74AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao
Research Gate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Rupesh_Chikara
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rupesh-kumar-chikara-31815417/

ySong

Yanlong Song, Ph.D.

Postdoctoral Research Fellow I

I graduated from Yanshan University, China, in 2005 with a BSc in Applied Mathematics. I received my MSc in Experimental Psychology from East China Normal University in 2008. From 2009 to 2013, I worked in industry on information consulting in Shanghai, China. I came to the US in the fall of 2013. I obtained my PhD in Kinesiology with a primary focus on motor control and learning from Iowa State University in 2017. I did my first Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship at University of Virginia, where I learned brain stimulation with TMS. After that, I joined Cook Children's and University of Texas at Arlington as a Post-Doctoral Research Fellow in January 2020. At Cook Children's, my research focuses on studying brain information processing in children with cerebral palsy with MEG, high-density EEG, and TMS. I have received funding as a PI from the American Academy of Cerebral Palsy & Developmental Medicine. I hope my research will foster the understanding of brain information processing and brain development in healthy children and children with movement disorders and provide insights to the development of neurorehabilitation interventions for children with motor functioning deficits such as cerebral palsy.

Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=FKKCsecAAAAJ&hl=zh-CN&oi=ao
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yl-song/

sShandley

Sabrina Shandley, Ph.D.

Research Project Manager

I was born in Colorado, but my parents brought me to Texas as a toddler, and I have not left so I consider myself a naturalized Texan. I graduated with my BSc in Biology in 2002, my Master's in Agriculture in 2003 and my PhD in Immunology in 2008. I have 10+ years of experience in human and animal research. My training included a Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship at Hyperion Biotechnology in San Antonio working on a variety of projects in both human trials and animal models for the United States government. I went on to UT Southwestern and, for a brief time, worked in the animal welfare Institute of Animal Care and Use Committee. I came to Cook Children's in 2017 and began working on neurology research projects, specifically in epilepsy and movement disorders, in the Research Administration Office before moving over to the research center upon its founding in 2019. My research interests include infant feeding and its relationship to brain injury.

sConrad

Shannon E Conrad

Research Assistant

After growing up in rural southeastern Ohio, I moved to Cleveland where I earned my BS in Psychology with a minor in Neuroscience from Baldwin Wallace University. While working toward my degree, I got an introduction to research by volunteering in a lab that utilized principles of Pavlovian conditioning to study recovery from phobias in a rodent model. I eventually escaped the cold, snowy winters of Ohio and moved to Texas to begin graduate school at Texas Christian University, where I earned my MS in Experimental Psychology. My graduate research sought a better understanding of the neural circuitry underlying habit development and incentive learning, specifically coping with unexpected loss, in rodents. I joined Dr. Papadelis at Cook Children's in 2020, and it has been incredibly rewarding to utilize my background in neuroscience while shifting my research focus to help children who have epilepsy and cerebral palsy. It is a pleasure to work with such a diverse, talented team while making a difference in the lives of children in our community.

Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=lyVRsscAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=sra
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shannon-conrad-5928a765/

Emily Brock

Research Assistant

I was born and raised here in Fort Worth, Texas. While in high school, I had the opportunity to study schizophrenia which solidified my passion for studying the human brain and neuroscience. Upon graduation, I attended Furman University in Greenville, South Carolina. During my college career, I was chosen to be a summer intern for UT Southwestern's Clinical Research and Experience in Depression (CRED) program, where I had the opportunity to work on a clinical trial focusing on major depressive disorder. Additionally, for my junior and senior years in college, I was a research associate in the behavioral neuroscience laboratory, where I worked on drug-related research on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder in rodent models. This research was the foundation of my senior neuroscience capstone and was the project I was able to present at Society for Neuroscience conference in Chicago, Illinois in October 2019. After obtaining a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience in May 2020, I returned to Texas and worked as a clinical research assistant at Baylor Scott & White Research Institute in Dallas, Texas. During that time, I worked on clinical trials for COVID-19 monoclonal antibodies and vaccine studies. I joined the Cook Children's Neuroscience Research team in August 2021 as a research assistant and I am very proud to be a part of such a dedicated, talented, and diverse team here at Cook Children's!

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/emily-brock-a970781b1/

Brianna McCullough

Research Assistant

Texas has always been my home and in 2011 I pursued my education at The University of Texas in Dallas. I leaped into research my 1st year of college as an undergraduate bioengineering research assistant at the natural science and engineering research laboratory on campus.

My undergraduate research examined potential gene therapies via transcriptional regulation and introduced me to my first imaging techniques, just 10 years ago! Simultaneously I earned my B.S. in Psychology.

I was given a perfect opportunity to learn more about the central nervous system in a nociceptive mechanisms of pain lab. I researched topics related to chronic neuropathic pain, Ampk activators and surgically isolated Dorsal Root Ganglia in mice. Most interestingly, I was able to follow mice and quantify their post-surgical pain outcomes. This fostered the idea that we must be able to measure and better identify a symptom like seizure activity or allodynia in order to treat the whole condition.

While finishing my Psychology degree, I found my true passion in child cognition. I proceeded to earn a 2nd B.S. in Child Learning and Development. After graduating, I was fortunate to work with children in Spain, China, and Mexico.

Upon returning to the U.S., I rededicated myself to my chosen passion of research in child cognition, branching out into the challenging and rewarding world of motor disorders and epilepsy. Cook Children's Mission of treating each child's life as sacred aligns with my own. I am honored to continue my chosen ambition and serve here at the Jane and John Justin Neuroscience Center.

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Elisa Acosta

Research Assistant

I was born and raised in Tucson, Arizona where I earned my BS in Physiology from the University of Arizona in December of 2020. During that time I worked for a pediatric surgeon and found a passion for pediatrics. After graduating I took a chance and moved to Texas for post-graduate job opportunities and have been lucky enough to become an employee of Cook Children's. I am very excited to be a part of a team that has a centralized goal of improving the surgical outcomes of children with epilepsy and cerebral palsy. In my free time, I love to hike, run half-marathons, and explore Texas.

Calandra Jones

Calandra Jones, M.S.

Research Assistant

I was born and raised in Fort Worth, Texas. I pursued my undergraduate degree at Texas A&M University and graduated with a B.S. in Nutritional Sciences in 2016. During my undergraduate studies, I began my research career in the Department of Nutrition and Food Sciences. My project focused on determining the impact of dietary constituents on regulatory processes that may protect against carcinogenesis and inflammation of the colon.

Upon graduation, I returned to Fort Worth, Texas where I began my career as a Pediatric Nutritionist. I worked for three years at the Office of Head Start, a non-profit organization that provides comprehensive emotional, social, health, nutritional, and educational support to low-income families across the country. In my role, I collaborated with many organizations in Tarrant County, including Cook Children's Health Care System, Early Childhood Intervention, and the UNT Health Sciences Center. As a product of the Head Start Program myself, I was fortunate to provide the same services that once helped my family. While serving as a Pediatric Nutritionist, my passion for community health was ignited.

During the height of the pandemic, I returned to school in 2020 and completed a M.S. in Biomedical Sciences at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso. While in graduate school, I conducted research projects at the Center of Excellence in Metabolic Disorders and Translational Medicine. My thesis focused on the effects of hyperglycemia on the nervous system using cell and mouse models.

In 2022, I joined the Jane and John Justin Neurosciences Center at Cook Children's Health Care System as a Research Assistant. The mission statement of Cook Children's Medical Center aligns with my desire to make quality healthcare accessible to all and increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in research. I also serve as an adjunct Assistant Professor of Anatomy and Physiology at Tarrant County College. I am proud to work at cook Children's and give back to the community in which I was raised.

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Nasheha Baset

Graduate Student
University of Texas at Arlington

I am a native Texan, raised by a family full of scientists and engineers. Growing up, math and biology were my two favorite subjects, which was reflective in my grade school activities, as well as working, building, and creating things on my family farm out in east Texas. In 2013, I began my BSc at University of Texas at Arlington. I had the privilege of working in the Group Creativity and Intergroup Relations lab. I was also involved in herpetology and clinical psychology research. In 2017, I graduated with my BSc in Biology and BSc in Psychology, and my interests and passions began to align with the field of bioengineering. Since beginning my volunteer work in the neurology department of Children's Health Dallas in 2015, this interest continued to grow. In January 2020, I began my MSc degree in Bioengineering at University of Texas at Arlington. My current research project is to gain a greater understanding of functional connectivity in children with drug resistant epilepsy for optimal surgical outcome. In my free time, I enjoy helping on the farm, swimming, and volunteering with disadvantaged and underprivileged children.

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Sameer Allahabadi, MS3

Empathetic Scholar
Texas Christian University School of Medicine

I was born in Glendora, CA. After graduating high school, I decided to move to Houston, TX to attend Rice University. There, I received my BA in Kinesiology with a focus in Sports Medicine. After graduating in 2018, I spent one full year working as a Research Interviewer at MD Anderson in the Thoracic/Head/Neck and Lung Cancer department. My role was to explain and enroll patients into various clinical protocols. Currently, I am a third year medical student as well as a member of thei class at Texas Christian University School of Medicine. The main goals of my research with Dr. Papadelis are to better understand the plasticity and functionality changes as well as advance rehabilitation methods for those with Hemiplegic Cerebral Palsy. In my free time, I enjoy playing basketball, hiking, cooking and trying new foods.

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Grace Newell, MS3

Empathetic Scholar
Texas Christian University School of Medicine

I was born and raised in the beautiful state of Colorado. After high school I moved to Texas to attend Texas Christian University (TCU). During college I was a Division I diver on the TCU Swim and Dive Team and I did undergraduate research in the biochemistry department. While at TCU, I received a BS in Neuroscience with a minor in Cultural Awareness in Health and Healthcare. After graduation I went straight to medical school and I am now a third-year medical student at Texas Christian University School of Medicine. I have always had a fascination for the brain and knew I wanted to do research in neurology. My research goals with Dr. Papadelis are to define characteristics in children with drug resistant epilepsy that make good neurosurgical candidates and to determine the value of combined MEG and HD-EEG in the localization of the epileptogenic zone. When I am not studying I enjoy hiking, camping, skiing, photography, and traveling.

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Emmanuelle Renoul

Intern graduate student

I grew up in the West part of France, in a numerous family where almost each branch of medical science has a representative. Because I was passionate about physics and mechanics, I naturally moved to Paris to study physical therapy at the Public Hospitals of Paris and I graduated in 2014. Since then, I have worked in several practices and completed various clinical trainings, principally in rheumatology, neurology and neuropediatrics. Far from educational deadlines, I used these years to travel, discover other cultures and languages through several months of volunteering as a PT in Argentina in 2015, and Jerusalem in 2018. Although I love working close to patients, I also want to combine it with research, therefore I went back to University in 2019 when I integrated the Biomedical Engineering Master's program at Université de Paris. I am interested in the relationships between neurological disorders and biomechanics of growth, aging and movement, especially in patients with cerebral palsy. After reading Dr. Papadelis' publications on the topic, I participated in research at Cook Children's as an intern for 6 months where I worked on somatosensory processing of children with cerebral palsy. Thanks to what I have learned at Cook, I hope to eventually integrate neuroimaging as a tool to treat patients with cerebral palsy.

oTanritanir

Omer Tanritanir

Intern undergraduate student

I was born in Gaziantep, a.k.a the food capital, in Turkey. In 2015, I came to Boston, the United States to continue my education. After graduating from high school in 2017, I moved to State College, Pennsylvania to attend the Pennsylvania State University College of Engineering. I am currently a senior, studying to obtain a Bachelor's degree in Computer Engineering, but I grew up looking up to my dad, who is a Pediatrician, so the love for Medical Science has always been in me. In the summer of 2020, I joined Dr. Papadelis' team as a student intern, and was delighted to be part of the group. The main goal of my research was to analyze high-frequency oscillations with phase-amplitude coupling to come up with an epilepsy biomarker. Additionally, I wrote a software program to synchronize MEG and HD-EEG to improve the overall analysis of epilepsy patients. In my free time, I love playing soccer, working out, and spending time with my family and friends.

Krishna Konduri

Undergraduate Student
University of Texas at Arlington

Hello all! My name is Krishnateja Konduir – call me Krishna – I am currently an undergraduate senior at the Univeristy of Texas at Arlington in Biomedical Engineering. I am interested in exploring the brain and all its intricacies. My time in the lab is focused on learning and experimenting with all research methods and techniques I come across to develop my base as an aspiring medical scientist. My future goals are to obtain my MD, PhD, and pursue research and patient care simultaneously. In my time outside research and work, I like to climb, workout, do martial arts, and read. If none of the above workout, I want to climb the seven summits. Please feel free to say HI if you see me in person!

Maddison Westbrook

Undergraduate Student
University of Texas at Arlington

I am a native Texas, born and raised in Spring, TX. I am currently majoring in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Texas at Arlington. Beyond the textbooks, I knit and crochet, and am described by my peers as a blend of artistic expression and scientific curiosity. It is a pleasure to be a member of Dr. Papadelis' team, and I look forward to positively impacting healthcare through my research.

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