A Message From the CNI Director:

Welcome to the Children's Neuroscience Institute (CNI), the destination for pediatric neuroscience research, education, and patient care.

One of the most common causes of death and disability in US children is brain injury. It can be extremely challenging to accurately diagnose and provide prognostication of neurological diseases in children. Currently, translation of therapies from laboratory to patients takes a very long time, thus, transformative approaches are desperately needed for the development of individualized treatments and accelerate recovery.

Our purpose is to improve child health and combat childhood neurological diseases by catalyzing multidisciplinary research collaborations across the neuroscience community. We want to build a unique and highly successful program that will generate innovative neuroscience methods, diagnostics, and treatments; making the CNI the top destination for treatment, education, and science.

Udai Pandey, PhD
Associate Professor
Pediatrics (Primary) and Human Genetics (Secondary)
Director, Children's Neuroscience Institute

 

Discover, Diagnose, and Cure

The Children’s Neuroscience Institute (CNI) is a unique constellation of the brightest and most highly creative professionals with interest and passion in experimental and clinical research with the overarching goals of developing healthy brains and minds in children across all age groups.

Topic-wise, the CNI encompasses and facilitates interdisciplinary fundamental and applied paradigm-shifting research. This research is aimed at the development of innovative concepts, methodologies, and approaches enabling breakthrough exploratory studies that lead to profound mechanistic understanding of normal neuro-development, the identification of aberrant pathogenic pathways of neurological diseases, and the discovery of personalized treatment strategies for neurologically ill and injured children.

The CNI Vision: Become a “conceptual crystallization center," an incubator for pioneering technologies and innovative studies; serving as the world’s premier destination for pediatric neuroscience research, education, and patient care.

Read more about the CNI here.

Our Research Cores

  • Multiomics: We envision coupling of the single cell lipidomics maps with protein and DNA maps to obtain a complete understanding of cellular metabolism and signaling. We believe this knowledge will have a transformative impact in diagnostic and therapeutic avenues for CNS disorders.
  • iPSC: We will use the latest techniques to reprogram, expand, and characterize human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) from both healthy and diseased skin or blood tissue. The iPSC will then be turned into specific human cells, including specific components of the nervous system and other tissue cells.
  • Bioinformatics: Bioinformatics leverages mathematics, statistics, and computer science to analyze and interpret biological information at the molecular, cellular, and genomic level. Bioinformatics has a profound impact in the better understanding of disease mechanisms, the identification of biomarkers of particular diseases or conditions, characterization of the patients' drug responses, and expediting the progress towards precision medicine.
  • Molecular Imaging: Using high-tech software and machinery, the imaging theme creates two- and three-dimensional images in addition to longitudinal quantification. Molecular images provide visualization, characterization and measurements of biological tissue and other living specimens at the cellular and molecular levels.
  • Human Neurocognitive Development: Cognition and brain systems develop significantly from the newborn period through adolescence and into adulthood, establishing lifelong trajectories. Understanding the brain mechanisms that support neurocognitive development can inform how to detect risk for impaired development (e.g., psychopathology, sequelae from traumatic brain injury, stress, or illness) and approaches for supporting optimal development (e.g., cognitive therapy, training, pharmaceuticals, brain stimulation).

Research

Our clinicians and scientists produce some of the most cutting edge research and scientific innovations, redefining our understanding of the neurological development of pediatric populations. 

News and Events

See a list of our upcoming conferences, scientific lectures, and other events. 

(UPCOMING EVENT)  April 9, 2024: RRS Seminar Speaker Evangelos Kiskinis, Ph.D. from Northwestern University

Education and Opportunities

In addition to residency and fellowship openings, we are always looking for talented and motivated researchers to join our team. 

People

Meet and contact our faculty and research team.