People
Faculty
Michael Boninger, MD
Professor
Research Interests
Assistive technology, biomechanics, neuroprosthetics, spinal cord injury, wheelchairs, regenerative medicine, teaching research
Marco Capogrosso, PhD
Assistant Professor
Research Interests
Neuroprothetics, Computer Models of Electrical Stimulation, arm paralysis, Spinal Cord Injury, Brain Computer Interfaces, Motor control
Jennifer L. Collinger, PhD
Assistant Professor
412-383-1274
Research Interests
Brain-computer interfaces, spinal cord injury, neurorehabilitation, assistive technology, neuroprosthetics
Lee Fisher, PhD
Assistant Professor
412-383-1326
Research Interests
neuroprosthetics, somatosensory function, spinal cord injury, amputation, balance control
Robert Gaunt, PhD
Assistant Professor
412-383-1426
Research Interests
neuroprostheses, sensorimotor control, bladder function, electrical stimulation
Elvira Pirondini, PhD
Research Assistant Professor
Research Interests
Stroke, motor control, proprioception, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), electroencephalography (EEG), biomarkers
Amit Sethi, PhD, OTR/L
Assistant Professor
Research Interests
motor control, stroke, neuroplasticity, neurorehabilitation
Mike Urbin, PhD
Research Assistant Professor, Health Scientist, VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System
412-648-7916
Research Interests
neuroplasticity, neurorehabilitation, stroke, spinal cord injury
Douglas J. Weber, PhD
Associate Professor, Department of Bioengineering
Research Interests
Bioelectronic medicines, biomechanics, electrophysiology, haptic perception, motor learning, neural coding and computation, neural plasticity, neural prostheses, neuromodulation, neurophysiology, spinal cord injury, stroke
George F. Wittenberg, MD, PhD
Professor
Research Interests
Neurorehabilitation, motor control, transcranial magnetic stimulation, functional imaging, stroke, movement disorders, neural network modeling
Lynn Worobey, PhD, DPT, ATP
Research Assistant Professor
412-383-1409
Research Interests
Spinal Cord Injury, assistive technology, interventional training programs, activity monitoring
Staff
Amy Boos, MSBME, OTR/L
Kinematic Occupational Therapist
Research Interests
Rehabilitation robotics, neurorehabilitation, biomechanics, motor control
Xiaoqi Fang, MS
Neurorehabilitation Data Analyst and Engineer
Research Interests
Brain connectivity and network analysis, transcranial magnetic stimulation
Karen Greenwald, BSN, RN, CCRC, CRRN
Research Nurse
Research Interests
Spinal Cord Injury, clinical trials, data management, subject recruitment, peer mentoring
Debbie Harrington
Senior Research Coordinator
412-383-1355
Research Interests
Rehabilitative research for individuals with disabilities
Charley Lafe, PhD
Health Science Fellow
Research Interests
Motor Learning, Neuromodulation, Neurorehabilitation, Stroke
Fang Liu, PhD
Research Engineer
Research Interests
Applying MRI to brain-computer interface research for patients with disabilities.
Kristin M. Quick, PhD
Neurotechnology Scientist
412-383-3740
Research Interests
Neural prosthetics, control of dexterous movements, artificial sensory feedback, sensorimotor plasticity, ipsilateral sensorimotor cortex
Tyler Simpson, MS
Senior Bioengineer
Research Interests
assistive technology, electrophysiology, and neuroprostheses
Elizabeth Stanley, DPT
Clinical Research Therapist
Research Interests
Spinal Cord Injury, Community Reintegration and Peer Support, Seating and Wheeled Mobility.
David Weir, MS
Engineer
Research Interests
biomechanics, robotics, prosthetic control, assistive technology
Jeff Weiss, MS
Bioengineer
Research Interests
neuroprosthetics, microstimulation, signal processing, robotics
Post Docs
Edoardo D'Anna, PhD
Research Interests
Brain Computer Interfaces, Sensory Feedback, Neuroprosthetics, Biomimetic Stimulation, Neural Engineering
Ashley Dalrymple, PhD
Research Interests
Neural Interfaces, Rehabilitation, Machine Learning, Control Systems, Sensorimotor Systems, Plasticity
Brian Dekleva, PhD
Research Interests
brain-computer interfaces, motor cortex, movement planning, motor decision-making
Chaitanya Gopinath, PhD
Research Interests
Neuro-urology, neural control of lower urinary tract, spinal cord, bladder and urinary physiology
Mehrdad Javidi, PhD
Research Interests
Musculoskeletal Modeling, Biomechanics, Prosthetic Control, Neuroprosthetics, Neurorehabilitation, Muscle Physiology, Muscle Function.
Devapratim Sarma, PhD
Research Interests
Bioelectronic Medicine, Neuroprothetics, Brain-computer Interfaces, Neurorehabilitation, Somatosensory Integration, Neural Control of Dexterous Movements, Cognitive Computational Neuroscience
Graduate Students
Josep Balaguer
Advisor: Marco Capogrosso
Research Interests
Neuroprosthetics; Restorative Technologies; Artificial Intelligence; Computational Neuroscience; Sensorimotor Models
Dylan Beam
Advisor: Lee Fisher
Research Interests
Neuroprosthetics, sensorimotor integration, somatosensory feedback, neurorehabilitation, assistive technologies
Ernesto Bedoy
Advisor: Doug Weber
Research Interests
Testing and improving neural prosthetics to improve cognitive and motor impairments.
Rohit Bose
Advisor: Lee Fisher
Research Interests
Cognitive Neuroscience, Neuroprosthetics, Network Theory, Machine Learning
Nathan Brantly
Advisor: Jennifer Collinger
Research Interests
Brain-Computer Interfaces, Neuroprosthetics, Rehabilitation Technology, Neuromuscular Biomechanics, Motor Control, Artificial Sensory Feedback, Sensorimotor Cortex
Scott Ensel
Advisor: Lynn Worobey
Research Interests
Brain-Computer Interfaces, Artificial Intelligence, Neuroprosthetics, Spinal Cord Injury
Juhi Farooqui
Advisor: Robert Gaunt
Research Interests
Brain-computer interfaces, neurotechnology
Zulfar Ghulam-Jelani
Advisors: Jennifer Collinger and George Wittenberg
Research Interests
Brain computer interfaces, neurorehabilitation, assistive technology, machine learning, cerebral palsy, spinal cord injury
Angelica Herrera
Advisor: Jennifer Collinger
Research Interests
Brain-computer interfaces, neural prosthetics, motor control, computational modeling
Chris Hughes, MS
Advisor: Robert Gaunt
Research Interests
brain-computer interfaces, sensory prosthetics, somatosensory cortex, computational modeling
Maria K Jantz
Advisor: Robert Gaunt
Research Interests
neuroprosthetics, bladder function, spinal cord injury, electrical stimulation
Vahagn Karapetyan, MD
Advisor: Robert Gaunt
Research Interests
Brain-computer interfaces, sensory neuroprosthetics, spinal cord injury, computational modeling
Jessica Kleinbart, ME
Advisor: Doug Weber
Research Interests
neuroprosthetics, implantable neurotechnology, neural interfaces, sensorimotor control, sensory feedback
Khaterah Kohneshin
Advisor: Robert Gaunt
Research Interests
Brain-computer interfaces, sensory neuroprosthetics, somatosensory feedback, computational modeling.
Ritesh Kumar, MS
Advisor: Robert Gaunt
Research Interests
Neural technology: Sensing and stimulation, bladder functions, medical device development
Monica Liu
Advisor: Doug Weber
Research Interests
Somatosensory feedback, sensorimotor integration, computational neuroscience, neuroprosthetics.
Jennifer Mak
Advisor: George Wittenberg
Research Interests
TMS, stroke rehabilitation, neuroprosthetics, robotics, assistive technology
Ameya Nanivadekar, PhD
Advisor: Lee Fisher
Research Interests
Neuroprosthetics, somatosensory feedback, neuropathic pain, computational modeling, big data management
Bailey Petersen
Advisor: Lee Fisher
Research Interests
Neuroprosthetics, Gait, Balance, Neurological Physical Therapy
Stephanie Rigot, DPT
Advisor: Michael Boninger
Research Interests
Spinal cord injury, ambulation, activity monitoring, machine learning, physical therapy, transfers
Jonathan Shulgach
Advisor: Lee Fisher
Research Interests
Neural prostheses, artificial sensory feedback, brain machine interfaces, neurorehabilitation, assistive technology
Erynn Sorensen
Advisor: Marco Capogrosso
Research Interests
Neuroprosthetics, Sensorimotor control, Neurorehabilitation, Spinal cord injury, Electrical Stimulation
Jordyn Ting
Advisor: Doug Weber
Research Interests
neuroplasticity, neurorehabilitation, neuroprosthetics, electrical stimulation, stroke, spinal cord injury
Nikhil Verma
Advisor: Doug Weber
Research Interests
Brain-Machine Interface; Neurotechnology; Artificial Intelligence; Human-Computer Interaction
Residents and Medical Students
Alex Watson, MD, MBA
Advisor: Jennifer Collinger
Research Interests
brain-computer interface, neurorehabilitation, prehabilitation, quality improvement, clinical outcomes.
Undergraduate Students
Audrey Case
Advisor: Jennifer Collinger
Research Interests
FMRI imaging, Brain Computer Interfaces
Sebastian Correa
Advisor: Doug Weber
Research Interests
Neural Engineering, Neural-Prosthetics, EMG, Spinal Cord Injury
Kaitlin DiGiovine
Advisor: Lynn Worobey
Research Interests
Spinal Cord Injuries, Assistive Technology, Seataing and Mobility,
Sahara Grinkewitz
Advisor: George Wittenberg
Research Interests
Stroke Rehabillation, Motor Control, Spinal Cord Injury, Neural Plasticity
Nick Kshatri
Advisor: Robert Gaunt
Research Interests
bladder function, medical device development
Alexandra Anton Mahfoud
Advisor: George Wittenberg
Research Interests
Spinal Cord Injury, Motor Control, Neurodegenerative Diseases, Brain-Machine Interfaces
Collaborators
Peter C. Gerszten, MD, MPH, FACS
Professor of Neurological Surgery
Research Interests
Outcomes research applied to neurosurgical interventions; failed back syndrome; epidural fibrosis; stereotactic radiosurgery of spinal lesions; minimally invasive spine surgical techniques; spinal motion preservation techniques
Elizabeth Tyler-Kabara, MD, PhD
Associate Professor
Research Interests
brain computer interfaces, cerebral palsy, spasticity, movement disorders, pediatric spinal and skull base disorders
Alumni
Wafa'a Abualrub
Advisor: Doug Weber
Research Interests
Biosignals, Brain-computer interfaces, Neuroplasticity, Neuroscience, Neurotransmitters, Human cognitive abilities, Computational modeling, Neuroprosthetics.
Eric Ashuckian
Bioengineer
Research Interests
Assistive technology, neuroprosthetics, biomechanics, brain-computer interfaces.
Carl Beringer
Advisor: Robert Gaunt
Research Interests
Myoelectric prosthetics, medical devices, motor control, electromyography (EMG)
Emily Bird, MSW, CCRC
Research Coordinator
Research Interests
Assistive technology, spinal cord injury, wheelchair skills/maintenance, wheelchair transfers
Misagh Mansouri Boroujeni, PhD
Research Interests
Musculoskeletal modeling, dynamics simulation, prosthetic control, biomechanics, neuroprosthetics, rehabilitation
Santosh Chandrasekaran, PhD
Research Interests
neuroprostheses, somatosensory feedback, embodiment
John Downey
Advisor: Jen Collinger
Research Interests
neuroprostheses, intracortical brain-computer interface, electrophysiology
Kevin Fleischmann
Advisor: Amit Sethi
Research Interests
Neuromuscular biomechanics, sports rehabilitation, force generation and measurement, injury prevention, ergonomics
Sharlene Flesher
PhD Student
Research Interests
brain-machine interface, somatosensory feedback, motor control, neuroprostheses
Simon Geukes
Advisor: Rob Gaunt
Research Interests
Brain Computer-Interfaces, neuroprosthetics, sensorimotor control, somatosensory feedback
Efrain Guirola Diaz
Advisor: Doug Weber
Research Interests
EEG, EMG, phantom limb pain, stroke, TMS, neural plasticity, neurophysiology
Alex Hauschild
Advisor: Robert Gaunt
Research Interests
Understanding the circuitry of tactile processing in humans
Rachel Hibbs, DPT
Research Therapist
Research Interests
Spinal Cord Injury, Assistive Technology, Seating and Wheeled Mobility.
