People

Alexander Rotenberg, MD, PhD

Principal Investigator

Dr. Rotenberg is a board-certified neurologist and epileptologist at Boston Children’s Hospital. He is also a Professor of Neurology, Director of the Epilepsy Monitoring Unit, and Director of the Neuromodulation Program in the Department of Neurology at Boston Children’s Hospital.

Dr. Rotenberg and his team develop novel methods for transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS). Alongside the lab’s basic-science work, the clinical program enrolls participants in trials designed to advance new neurophysiologic techniques.

Henry Hing Cheong Lee, PhD

Senior Staff Scientist

Henry’s work focuses on two preclinical research areas. First, he develops enzyme replacement therapy and gene therapy for succinic semialdehyde dehydrogenase deficiency (SSADHD). Using an inducible mouse model that allows controlled, cell-specific SSADH expression, he studies the parameters of safe SSADH restoration to de-risk potential therapies.

He also investigates the cellular mechanisms of post-traumatic epileptogenesis, combining rodent models of traumatic brain injury with immunohistochemistry to identify potential pharmacologic targets for prevention and symptom reversal.

Lna Ali

Clinical Research Specialist I

Lna specializes in EEG analysis to explore the neural mechanisms underlying cognitive processes. Her work bridges cognitive neuroscience and clinical research, with an emphasis on how EEG can illuminate brain activity during typical and atypical cognitive function.

She also helps operate the Experimental Neurophysiology Core, which provides rodent EEG recording and analysis services to academic and industry partners for drug testing and target-engagement studies.

Outside the lab: rock climbing, photography, hiking, and camping.

Elena Gori

Research Assistant

Elena is a Clinical Research Assistant in Neurology specializing in clinical trials for rare forms of epilepsy. She coordinates and supports studies aimed at advancing treatment options for patients with complex neurological conditions.

She also performs TMS for presurgical mapping, helping identify critical motor and language regions to guide neurosurgical planning. Outside the hospital, Elena is a certified yoga instructor.

Manasvi Surapuraju

Research Assistant

Mana is a 2025 graduate of the University of Massachusetts Amherst with a BS in Biochemistry. She applies molecular-biology techniques to advance AAV-based gene therapies, including activity-dependent suppression of overactive excitatory neurons in epilepsy.

Shirzat Mushajiang

Research Assistant II

Shirzat’s research focuses on therapies for traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic epilepsy, particularly modulation of glutamate transporter-1 (GLT-1/EAAT-2) as a strategy for post-traumatic seizure prevention.

Outside the lab: basketball and jigsaw puzzles.

Jin Zijie

Research Assistant II

Jin (Marc) conducts molecular and histological analyses for gene-therapy projects, particularly those aimed at gene replacement for rare pediatric syndromes. His work includes plasmid preparation, DNA extraction, and protein analysis—including Western blotting—to measure expression after gene replacement.

Min Yuan

Visiting Scholar

Dr. Yuan is a clinical neurologist engaged in patient care and translational neuroscience research. His work focuses on mechanisms that follow neurological insult and injury and on AAV-based gene therapy. In the Rotenberg Lab, he develops experimental platforms to investigate how viral-vector interventions modulate neural circuits and contributes to the translational development of TMS and tDCS.

Kamran Salayev

Postdoctoral Fellow

Dr. Salayev is a neurologist whose research spans neurophysiology, epilepsy, and autism spectrum disorders. His work includes identifying EEG biomarkers to improve diagnostic yield and predict treatment response; investigating motor-cortex mapping with TMS in epilepsy; and examining language complexity and lexical features in TMS-based language mapping.

He combines clinical expertise with translational neuroscience to improve the diagnosis and treatment of neurological disorders. Beyond his scientific work, he writes novels for children and young adults and pursues other artistic interests.