NJIT Math Professor Who Researches Neural Oscillations To Chair NIH Committee
Farzan Nadim, PhD, professor in the departments of mathematical sciences and biological sciences at NJIT, has been appointed chairperson of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Sensorimotor Integration Study Section from July of 2012 to June of 2014.
“This is a major honor and recognition for Dr. Nadim’s prominence as a scientist,” said Fadi Deek, dean of the College of Science and Liberal Arts at NJIT. “It is a significant responsibility and commitment to the biological and biomedical research community.” This scientific review panel considers applications that relate to the role of the nervous system in sensory input or motor output.Study Sections are continuing review panels at NIH which meet three times each year to review individual and program project grant applications. For the past two years, Nadim has served on this study section, which relates to his own research. He will now be the chair for two years, the remainder of his term.
“It is an honor to be recognized by the NIH to serve in such a leadership role. I look forward to both the challenge of and the valuable experience gained from this position,” said Nadim.
Nadim’s research focuses on synaptic dynamics, such as short-term depression and facilitation contribute to the generation and control of oscillatory neuronal activity. Such synaptic dynamics are found ubiquitously in all parts of the nervous system.
His research has helped identify new mechanisms through which fast and slow oscillatory networks coordinate their activities. Elucidating mechanisms through which non-identical networks interact will help us understand, at a cellular and network level, how widespread synchronous patterns arise in large non-homogeneous networks, such as the brain. Such widespread synchronization of rhythmic activity among networks of neurons that normally function to produce distinct behavior can lead to disorders such as generalized epilepsy and Parkinson´s disease.