Current Lab Members
Brian G Dias
Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Yerkes National Primate Research Center
Education:
Ph.D. (UT-Austin, 2008)
M.Sc. (Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, India, 2003)
Short Bio:
Brian grew up in India, and received his PhD from the University of Texas at Austin. Over the years, his research has investigated the neurobiology underlying stress, depression, social behavior and fear, in rats, lizards, birds, fruit flies, and mice. While most of his current work uses mice, generous collaborators have enabled Brian and his team to begin investigating the biological basis of behavioral states and neuropsychiatric disorders, in non-human primates, and humans.
Brian’s research seeks to understand how mammalian neurobiology, physiology and reproductive biology is impacted by stress or trauma, and how parental legacies of stress or trauma influence offspring. Armed with this understanding, Brian and his team aim to devise therapeutic interventions to ameliorate the effects of stress or trauma in both, ancestral and descendant populations. Toward this goal, Brian's laboratory uses molecular, cellular, genetic, epigenetic, physiological, and behavioral approaches to investigate how the biology of an organism and its responsiveness to stress or trauma is influenced by micro- (genome, epigenome and hormones), and macro-environments (ancestral, in utero and post-natal experiences). Among other outlets, Brian’s work has been featured in Nature, on the BBC, in a list of the 10 Most Important Discoveries of 2014 published by La Recherche Magazine.
In addition to his scientific work, Brian is interested in scientific innovation and education. This interest has seen Brian participate in the 2016 Sci-Foo Camp – an invitation-only ideas festival co-organized by Google, O’Reilly Media, Nature and Digital Science often described as a mini-Woodstock of ideas. Finally, Brian is a faculty member of the Emory Tibet Science Initiative, teaches Neuroscience to Tibetan Buddhist monastics, and was recently on a panel discussing “Consciousness – Perspectives from Western Neuroscience and Buddhist Philosophy” with His Holiness – The Dalai Lama, Dr. Christof Koch (Director, Allen Brain Institute), Dr. Carol Worthman (Emory University), Ven. Lodoe Sangpo and Ven. Gelek Gylatsen (Tenzin Gyatso Scholars). Video link: https://youtu.be/MrNPy1wHdVI
Select Awards:
2017
2016
Yerkes Profile Google Scholar
Brian G Dias
Assistant Professor, Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Yerkes National Primate Research Center
Education:
Ph.D. (UT-Austin, 2008)
M.Sc. (Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, India, 2003)
Short Bio:
Brian grew up in India, and received his PhD from the University of Texas at Austin. Over the years, his research has investigated the neurobiology underlying stress, depression, social behavior and fear, in rats, lizards, birds, fruit flies, and mice. While most of his current work uses mice, generous collaborators have enabled Brian and his team to begin investigating the biological basis of behavioral states and neuropsychiatric disorders, in non-human primates, and humans.
Brian’s research seeks to understand how mammalian neurobiology, physiology and reproductive biology is impacted by stress or trauma, and how parental legacies of stress or trauma influence offspring. Armed with this understanding, Brian and his team aim to devise therapeutic interventions to ameliorate the effects of stress or trauma in both, ancestral and descendant populations. Toward this goal, Brian's laboratory uses molecular, cellular, genetic, epigenetic, physiological, and behavioral approaches to investigate how the biology of an organism and its responsiveness to stress or trauma is influenced by micro- (genome, epigenome and hormones), and macro-environments (ancestral, in utero and post-natal experiences). Among other outlets, Brian’s work has been featured in Nature, on the BBC, in a list of the 10 Most Important Discoveries of 2014 published by La Recherche Magazine.
In addition to his scientific work, Brian is interested in scientific innovation and education. This interest has seen Brian participate in the 2016 Sci-Foo Camp – an invitation-only ideas festival co-organized by Google, O’Reilly Media, Nature and Digital Science often described as a mini-Woodstock of ideas. Finally, Brian is a faculty member of the Emory Tibet Science Initiative, teaches Neuroscience to Tibetan Buddhist monastics, and was recently on a panel discussing “Consciousness – Perspectives from Western Neuroscience and Buddhist Philosophy” with His Holiness – The Dalai Lama, Dr. Christof Koch (Director, Allen Brain Institute), Dr. Carol Worthman (Emory University), Ven. Lodoe Sangpo and Ven. Gelek Gylatsen (Tenzin Gyatso Scholars). Video link: https://youtu.be/MrNPy1wHdVI
Select Awards:
2017
- CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholar
- FAPESP-SPRINT Award (São Paolo Researchers in International Collaboration) (a collaboration with Dr. Newton Canteras at University of São Paolo)
2016
- Kavli Fellow
- Alexander von Humboldt Fellow
- Emory University Research Council Award
- Yerkes Pilot Project Award
- Participant at 2016 Sci-Foo Camp – an invitation-only ideas festival co-organized by Google, O’Reilly Media, Nature and Digital Science often described as a mini-Woodstock of ideas.
Yerkes Profile Google Scholar
Hadj Aoued
Research Specialist
Soma Sannigrahi
Senior Research Specialist
Education
M.Sc in Zoology (Visva Bharati University, Santiniketon, India, 1998)
Professional Experience
Senior Research Specialist, Dias Laboratory, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University (May 2016 - Present)
Lead Research Specialist, Dias Laboratory, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University (September 2015 - Present)
Senior Research Specialist, Hubert Department Of Global Health, Rollins School Of Public Health, Emory University (April 2015 - September 2015)
Senior Research Specialist, Department Of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, School Of Medicine, Emory University (June 2010 - January 2015)
Lead Research Specialist, Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, Emory University (December 2006 - May 2010)
Archana Venkataraman
Graduate Student-Emory Neuroscience Program
M.S. (Texas A&M University, 2013)
Rachel Gluck
Medical Student Researcher
B.S. in Neuroscience and Behavioral Biology (Emory University, 2010)
M. Phil in Psychology and Neural Sciences (University of St Andrews, 2013)
M.D. Candidate (Emory University, expected 2019)
Former Lab Members (position, program, time in lab)
1. Aastha KC {Student Scholar, Institute on Neuroscience (ION) Participant, June-August 2016}
2. Salma Ferdous {Rotating Graduate Scholar, Emory Genetics & Molecular Biology Program, Dec 2015-Feb 2016}
3. Simone Alicia Campbell {Rotating Graduate Scholar, Emory Neuroscience Program, Sep-Dec 2016}
4. Sarah Strausser {Undergraduate Research Scholar, August 2016-May 2017}
5. Justin Baman {Undergraduate Research Scholar, September 2015-May 2017}
6. Nandini Doshi {Undergraduate Research Scholar, Emory SURE Fellow, Honor's Thesis, September 2015-May 2017}
7. Audrey Easton {Undergraduate Research Scholar, 2016 Beckman Program Scholar in Computational and Cognitive Neuroscience, September 2015-May 2017}
8. Meghan Wynne {Rotating Graduate Scholar, Emory Neuroscience Program, July-Aug 2017}
9. Meghna Ravi {Rotating Graduate Scholar, Emory Neuroscience Program, Feb-May 2018}
10. Hannah Linsenbaum {Undergraduate Research Scholar, September 2015-April 2018}
11. Preethi Reddi {Undergraduate Research Scholar, August 2017-April 2018}
12. Kristie Garza { Graduate Scholar, Emory Neuroscience Program, June 2017-May 2018}
13. Natalia Brody {Undergraduate Research Scholar, Jan 2016-May 2018}
