Awarded in 2017
Home Departments: Bioengineering and Medicine
Faculty Advisors: Mark Krasnow (Biochemistry) and David Kingsley (Developmental Biology)

Research Title: Genetic identification of brainstem circuits controlling vocalization and cardiac electrophysiology

Research Description: The ability to speak is critical for everyday communication but can be disrupted by genetic and acquired neurological and psychiatric disorders. During vocalization, over 40 laryngeal muscles, respiratory muscles, and orofacial muscles are precisely coordinated by the brain to produce phonemes (a unit of sound), but how the brain accomplishes this feat is poorly understood. The goal of Avin's project is to understand how the brain generates the muscle activation patterns of vocalization. Avin is investigating how neural circuits in the mouse brain generate simple vocalizations. In addition, he is investigating mechanisms by which similar circuits changed during human evolution to give us the ability to voluntarily control vocal cord muscles, a change which expanded our vocal range and enabled the eventual development of language. By developing a detailed understanding of how the brain generates vocalization, this research could enable the development of new therapies for speech and language disorders.

WHERE IS HE NOW?

Avin has started his Psychiatry Residency (research-intensive track) at Harvard Medical School / Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston.