People

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR/DIRECTOR

Dr. Terence Sanger, M.D., Ph.D.

Dr. Terence Sanger is the Chief Scientific Officer of CHOC Children's and Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at the UCI School of Engineering. His research focuses on understanding the origins of pediatric movement disorders from both a biological and a computational perspective. The primary goal of his research is to discover new methods for treating children with movement disorders. Dr. Sanger coordinates the Childhood Motor Study Group (CMSG) and the NIH Taskforce on Childhood Movement Disorders. He runs the pediatric movement disorders clinic at CHOC Children's in the department of Neurology. His training includes background in Child Neurology, Electrical Engineering, Signal Processing, Control Theory, Neural Networks, and Computational Neuroscience.

Email: terry[at]sangerlab.net
ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Terence-Sanger

RESEARCH ASSOCIATES

Alireza Mousavi, Ph.D.

Alireza is a postdoctoral scholar at SangerLab with a Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Kentucky. His Ph.D. research focused on studying human learning and human-in-the-loop control behavior using control theory and system identification techniques. Currently, his work at UCI explores the function and stability of complex systems, predominantly brain networks, and their dynamics. Using spiking data, local field potential (LFP) recordings from the basal ganglia, thalamus, and brain stem, as well as EEG recordings in children with dystonia, Alireza develops tools and theories grounded in complex systems science, control theory, signal processing, and machine learning to understand how neurological disorders like dystonia affect brain stability, connectivity, and network dynamics.

CLINICAL STAFF

Aprille Tongol, B.A.

Aprille is the clinical research study administrator for the Sanger Lab. She received her B.A. in Biochemistry at the University of San Diego. She currently manages human subject board submissions at CHOC and provides support for other study centers. She also coordinates a research project in the Sanger Lab that studies whether wearing a vibrotactile biofeedback device may improve motor function in children and young adults with dystonia, hypertonia or spasticity.

Email: aprille[at]sangerlab.net

GRADUATE STUDENTS

Maral Kasiri, Ph.D.

Maral Kasiri is a PhD graduate at Sanger Lab. She received her B.S. with honors in Biomedical Engineering from Tehran Polytechnic University in 2016 and received her M.S. in Biomedical Engineering from USC in 2018. Maral is interested in understanding the effect of perturbation on information flow in human motor control, whether this information is a change in environment or is a perturbation to the control unit (brain). In particular, she investigates how children with dystonia plan their movements and how deep brain stimulation (DBS) improves their motor symptoms. Her focus is on identify the effect of stimulation patterns on the functional connectivity of deep brain regions and motor control based on information theory by utilizing linear and non-linear system identification techniques and machine learning models.

Email: maral.kasiri[at]gmail.com
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/maralkasiri/

Sina Javadzadeh, M.S.

Sina is a PhD candidate in Biomedical Engineering at Sangerlab. He received his undergraduate degree in Electrical Engineering from Amirkabir University of Technology, Tehran, Iran, and his Master's degree in Biomedical Engineering (cum laude) from Politecnico di Milano, Milan, Italy. Throughout his career, he has utilized electronic circuit design, signal processing, and machine learning to acquire and process electrophysiological signals from the human body and brain, advancing current rehabilitation devices and neuroprosthetics. His current focus at Sangerlab is on processing spiking data from internal recordings of the Basal Ganglia and Thalamic regions in children with dystonia. In particular, he aims to decode behavior and brain dynamics using mathematical tools such as statistical analysis, computational modeling, and machine learning algorithms.

Email: javadzas[at]uci.edu
Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/sina-javadzadeh/
ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Sina-Javadzadeh-2

Rahil Soroushmojdehi, M.S.

Rahil Soroush is a PhD candidate in Electrical Engineering at the University of California, Irvine. She holds a Master of Science in Biomedical Engineering from the Polytechnic University of Milan, where she graduated cum laude, and a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering and one in Biomedical Engineering from Amirkabir University of Technology. Rahil's current research focuses on the effects of Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) on temporal dynamics of brain responses in children with dystonia. Her expertise lies in bridging the gap between neuroscience, advanced signal processing and modeling and machine learning.

Email: rsoroush[at]uci.edu
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rahil-soroushmojdehi/

Mehrnaz Asadi, B.Sc.

Mehrnaz Asadi is a PhD candidate in Computer Engineering at the University of California, Irvine. She earned her bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Tehran. Her research focuses on brain dynamics and dimensionality, specifically investigating the role of the Basal Ganglia in motor control. Mehrnaz utilizes intracranial recordings from the Basal Ganglia and thalamic regions, primarily from children with dystonia, and leverages predictive modeling and machine learning techniques to decode behavior and brain function, with the goal of uncovering insights into neural dynamics and motor behavior.

Email: mehrnaza[at]uci.edu