Tufts School of Medicine Neuroscience Department

We are just two weeks away from the 14th Annual Tufts Neuroscience Symposium & Shucart Lecture! Register and learn more at the link below.

14th Annual Tufts Neuroscience Symposium & Shucart Lecture Please join us in person for the 14th Annual Tufts Neuroscience Symposium and William Shucart Lecture on Thursday, October 16th, 2025.

We are excited to share that Professor Chris Dulla, PhD has been named permanent Chair of the Department of Neuroscience and will be proposed as the Annetta and Gustav Grisard Professor of Neuroscience at Tufts University School of Medicine!

Over the past 15 years at Tufts, Dr. Dulla has established himself as a prominent researcher in brain function and neurological disorders, as well as a nationally recognized mentor and educator.

Congratulations to Dr. Dulla on this well-earned appointment! We look forward to the department’s continued growth and excellence under his leadership.

Congrats to Professor Chris Dulla, PhD, who has been named permanent Chair of the Department of Neuroscience and will be proposed as the Annetta and Gustav Grisard Professor of Neuroscience at TUSM! | Tufts University School of Medicine Congrats to Professor Chris Dulla, PhD, who has been named permanent Chair of the Department of Neuroscience and will be proposed as the Annetta and Gustav Grisard Professor of Neuroscience at TUSM! 🎊 Dr. Dulla is a distinguished neuroscientist whose research has significantly advanced our unders...

We are excited to officially welcome our new faculty member, Assistant Professor Emily Newman, PhD!

A triple Jumbo and accomplished neuroscientist, Dr. Newman joins TUSM as the inaugural Ghahreman Khodadad Professor of Neuroscience. Her research focuses on the neurobiology of social interactions and aggression, female chronic social stress, and the neurocircuitry and molecular mechanisms that underlie stress and fear-related disorders.

The professorship is named for neurosurgeon Ghahreman Khodadad, MD, whose generous gift also established the Ghahreman Khodadad Center for the Study of Excessive Pathological Selfishness (EPS) based at TUSM. The center is dedicated to developing an understanding of the neurobiological underpinnings of EPS, bridging biology and behavior.

To learn more about the Khodadad Center, please visit:
https://medicine.tufts.edu/research/research-labs-centers/research-centers/khodadad-center

Recent studies from the Maguire Lab provide exciting new insights into the complex relationship between past experiences and behavioral outcomes, especially related to stress and social interactions. Their findings could have significant implications for understanding psychiatric disorders.

Tufts Researchers Discover How Experiences Influence Future Behavior School of Medicine researchers manipulate neural circuits in mice that make social interaction more or less rewarding.

Thanks to all who joined us for the 13th Annual Tufts Neuroscience Symposium and William Shucart Lecture on November 7th!

Each year, the full-day event features engaging research talks and discussions from prominent leaders in Neuroscience as well as short talks by Tufts Neuroscience trainees. This year’s program highlighted advances in systems, cognitive and computational neuroscience.

The final lecture of the day honors Dr. William Shucart, former professor and chair of Neurosurgery at TUSM, who advocated for education, collaboration and exchange between clinicians and basic science researchers.

This year’s event drew nearly 100 attendees across disciplines including Neurosurgery, Neurology, and Psychiatry, as well as individuals from many Boston area schools and industries. Check out more event photos.

We are just one week away from our 13th annual Neuroscience Symposium & William Shucart Lecture! Learn more and register below.

13th Annual Tufts Neuroscience Symposium & Shucart Lecture Please join us in person for the 13th Annual Tufts Neuroscience Symposium and William Shucart Lecture on Thursday, November 7th, 2024.

Congratulations to Dr. Michele Jacob for receiving an Oxford-Harrington Rare Disease Scholar Award. These inaugural awards support breakthrough treatments for rare diseases across neurologic, oncologic, and metabolic disease areas.

The award will advance the efforts of Dr. Jacob and colleagues to develop an efficacious treatment for CTNNB1 syndrome, a rare neurodevelopmental disorder linked with motor and intellectual disabilities and some forms of autism, that currently lacks treatment options.

Their team’s latest findings, published in EMBO Molecular Medicine, provide the first evidence that an efficacious drug treatment can be developed to potentially mitigate and even reverse the cognitive and motor symptoms of the disorder.

Learn more about their research on CTNNB1:

Researchers Identify Possible Treatment for Rare Disorder | School of Medicine Researchers at Tufts University School of Medicine and the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (GSBS) have identified a small molecule that, in mouse and human cell models, rectifies the underlying molecular cause of a rare genetic developmental disorder linked with motor and intellectual disabil...

Sailing to Victory for People with Epilepsy Neuroscientist Phil Haydon hopes his recent win in the Newport Bermuda sailing race will help inspire others with epilepsy to live fuller lives.

How does the neurobiology of brain development influence teens' sometimes unpredictable behavior?

Ayesha Sengupta, research assistant professor of Neuroscience, shares insights.

Teen Behavior, Explained by a Neuroscientist Teenagers are known for their sometimes-unpredictable behavior. One moment they’re mature and clear-thinking, and the next they’re irrational or engaging in

Researchers in the Dulla Lab are using new imaging technology to show how traumatic brain injuries can lead to widespread changes in the brain.

Study: Traumatic Brain Injury Leads to Widespread Changes in Neural Connections | Tufts University School of Medicine A head injury serious enough to affect brain function, such as that caused by a car accident or sudden fall, leads to changes in the brain beyond the site of impact, Tufts University School of Medicine scientists recently reported in the journal Cerebral Cortex. In an animal model of traumatic brain...

New year, new hopes and inspiration.

Read what Neuroscience interim chair Dr. Chris Dulla and other Tufts faculty are excited about in the year ahead.

Sources of Hope: Looking Ahead to 2024 Tufts faculty members offer reflections about sources of hope and enthusiasm for the future with the advent of 2024

Interested in how empathy, selfishness, and social dynamics are controlled in the brain?
Tufts Neuroscience is hiring!

The Neuroscience department is recruiting for a tenure-track faculty position open at all levels. Seeking candidates who use innovative approaches to investigate the neurobiological underpinnings of social interactions and behaviors.

The position comes with an endowed chair and an endowed research fund. The person filling this role will also become the new Director of the Khodadad Center, which focuses on excessive pathological selfishness. Apply and share below!


Learn more about the Khodadad Center:
https://medicine.tufts.edu/research/research-labs-centers/research-centers/khodadad-center

Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor - Boston, Massachusetts job with Tufts University School of Medicine | 37134 Neuroscience Dept. at TUSM in Boston, MA, seeks candidates for a tenure-track faculty position focused on Excessive Pathological Selfishness (EPS).