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NEURAL CIRCUITS FOR MOVEMENT
Discovering the molecular, cellular, and circuit mechanisms that underlie innate and learned motor actions
Meet the Team
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Lauren McElvain, Ph.D.
Principal Investigator
Dr. McElvain is an Assistant Professor in the Neurobiology Section of the Department of Biological Sciences at USC. She received a Sc.B. in Neuroscience from Brown University and a Ph.D. in Neurosciences from UC San Diego. In her doctoral research, she investigated cellular and synaptic mechanisms of sensorimotor signaling in the brainstem with Dr. Sascha du Lac at the Salk Institute. As a postdoctoral fellow, she instigated the anatomical and functional organization of basal ganglia circuitry with Dr. Rui Costa at the Champalimaud Foundation in Lisbon, Portugal and with Dr. David Kleinfeld at UC San Diego.
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Minh Bui, B.Sc.
PhD Student
Minh is a PhD student in the Neuroscience Graduate Program at USC. She received a B.Sc in Neuroscience from UCLA. Her current research project in the McElvain lab focuses on motor behavior functions and the neuroanatomical connectivity of the basal ganglia's output structures.
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Henry Phan, B.Sc.
Research Assistant
Henry graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a B.Sc. in Molecular Biology and a minor in Neurobiology. Henry is dedicated to pursuing a career in neurosurgery, where he aims to integrate his strong background in molecular and neurobiology into advancing medical practices.
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Ruth Jing
Undergraduate Researcher
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Saeed Dardas
Undergraduate Researcher
Saeed is a Junior studying Neuroscience with a minor in Performance Science. His passion lies in bridging the gap between research and medicine, with a focus on unraveling and understanding the intricate circuitry of the brain, particularly the basal ganglia and its relation to Parkinson's disease.
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Carol Alata
Undergraduate Researcher
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Join us!
We are recruiting motivated and curious students, postdocs, and technicians to join our growing lab.
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Contact Dr. McElvain at:
mcelvain AT usc DOT edu