February 14, 2026, Filed Under: NewsResearch Power Couple Studies How Brain Circuit Processing Is Altered in Neurodevelopmental Disorders MacKenzie Howard, PhD Audrey Brumback, MD, PhD Work by our research power couple, MacKenzie Howard, PhD, an assistant professor of neurology and neuroscience, and Audrey Brumback, MD, PhD, an assistant professor of neurology, focuses on understanding neurodevelopmental disorders at the cellular and molecular levels. By defining how different brain circuits process information and how that information processing is altered in neurodevelopmental disorders, their team hopes to uncover new ways of shifting brain cell activity from the disordered processing back toward the normal state. In two recently published articles, the team defined differences between two separate subcircuits within the connections between the prefrontal cortex and the mediodorsal thalamus, a processing network involved in controlling higher functions such as cognition, learning, and social behavior. Different properties of neurons in the thalamic subregions shift the timing of cell responses, changing the type of information these two different circuits extract (Lyuboslavsky et al. 2024). They next studied a genetically engineered mouse model of fragile X syndrome. In these animals, brain cells in one of the subcircuits are altered while those in the other subcircuit are not (Ordemann et al. 2025). This vital work is improving our understanding of how and where such disorders take root and may facilitate the development of future therapies. Further work by the Brumback-Howard team has explored the roots of neurodevelopmental disorders in brain areas that are often overlooked. The cerebellum has long been known for its role in coordinating and learning movements, but its role in learning and memory, cognition, social behavior, and language is less well known. The team studied a genetically engineered mouse model of Dravet syndrome, which typically causes severe epilepsy, disabling movement disorders, developmental and intellectual regression, and autism. They discovered that while the seizures associated with Dravet syndrome likely arise in the cortex and hippocampus, many of its other manifestations may arise from altered neural activity in the cerebellum (Guillén et al. 2025). These findings may shift and guide the priorities for therapy development to focus on the cerebellum and other brain structures that are rarely considered in neurodevelopmental disorders.
February 10, 2026, Filed Under: NewsHardy Spearheads CNS Special Interest Group Assistant neurology professor and pediatric neuroimmunologist Duriel Hardy, MD, led the creation of a Child Neurology Society special interest group focusing on the transition from pediatric care to adult care. Dr. Hardy has a long-standing interest in transition of care for adolescents with neurological disorders and recently published a paper in the Journal of Child Neurology on transition needs among youth with neuroimmune disorders. CNS members who are interested in joining the new SIG can contact Dr. Hardy at duriel.hardy@austin.utexas.edu.
February 4, 2026, Filed Under: NewsMaher Presents Timothy M. George, MD, Memorial Lecture Cormac Maher, MD (middle) with Dell Medical School neurosurgery faculty members (L to R) Juan Ortega-Barnett, MD, Nicholas Barbaro, MD, Kevin Kumar, MD, PhD, and Elias Rizk, MD, PhD, MSc The fourth annual Timothy M. George, MD, Memorial Lecture, held at Dell Children’s on November 8, was presented by Cormac O. Maher, MD, chief of neurosurgery at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford and Botha Chan Endowed Professor in the Department of Neurosurgery, Division of Pediatric Neurosurgery at Stanford University School of Medicine. Maher’s keynote lecture on current controversies in Chiari malformation was part of the Timothy M. George, MD, Memorial Lecture and Research Symposium: The Economics of Pediatric Health Care. Maher opened the symposium with reflections on Timothy George, a professor of neurosurgery at Dell Medical School and a pediatric neurosurgeon at Dell Children’s who died unexpectedly in 2019. “I interacted with him extensively in neurosurgery spheres,” Maher said. “He always talked to you on your level. When I was coming into the field, he would introduce you to everybody and get you involved in whatever research was going on. He was really an amazing person, and his patients loved him.” Previous memorial lecture guest speakers have included Susan Durham, MD, MS, professor of clinical neurological surgery at Keck School of Medicine of USC and chief of neurosurgery at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles; John (Jay) Wellons III, MD, MSPH, professor of neurological surgery and pediatrics and chief of pediatric neurological surgery at Vanderbilt University Medical Center; and Bermans Iskandar, MD, professor and chair of pediatric neurosurgery at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. Maher receiving the Timothy George lectureship with Kumar
February 3, 2026, Filed Under: NewsWelcome, Dr. Somekh Welcome to Melanie Somekh, PhD, MA, who completed her clinical pediatric neuropsychology fellowship through our program last year and now joins us full time. Dr. Somekh is an assistant professor of neurology and a neuropsychologist with expertise in early childhood neurodevelopment and Spanish/English bilingual neuropsychological assessment. She is skilled in adapting assessment procedures to ensure culturally responsive evaluations. Dr. Somekh received her Master of Arts and PhD in clinical psychology from Fordham University in New York, then completed predoctoral training in neuropsychology at Weill Cornell Medicine, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, and Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. She completed her psychology internship with emphasis in neuropsychology at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and her postdoctoral fellowship in clinical pediatric neuropsychology at Dell Medical School. Dr. Somekh is widely published and is a member of the American Academy of Clinical Neuropsychology, International Neuropsychological Society, Hispanic Neuropsychological Society, and American Psychological Association. In 2022, she received an American Epilepsy Society (AES) Young Investigator Award.
January 30, 2026, Filed Under: NewsFour Faculty Members Named Castle Connolly 2026 Top Doctors We are proud to announce that four of our pediatric neuroscience providers were named Castle Connolly Top Doctors: Dave Clarke, MD; Jane Edmond, MD; Louisa Keith, MD; and E. Steve Roach, MD. Castle Connolly Top Doctors represent the top 7% of all US practicing physicians and are peer nominated through surveys sent out to tens of thousands of doctors. Those results are rigorously vetted by a research team of Castle Connolly physicians based on several factors.
January 17, 2026, Filed Under: NewsCerebral Palsy Clinic Hosts Second Annual Symposium (L to R) Faheem Mahomed, MD, rehabilitation program administrator Regina Sorkin, BSN, RN, Jackie James, OT, ATP, Catherine Harrison, PT, DPT, Allan Lara, MD, and Glendaliz Bosques, MD The Dell Children’s Comprehensive Cerebral Palsy Clinic hosted its second annual Pediatric Cerebral Palsy Symposium on January 10 at Dell Children’s. The conference educated community therapists on the treatment and management of spasticity, dystonia, and movement disorders across the continuum of care. Presentations included “Early Childhood Cerebral Palsy” by assistant professors of neurology Leah Ferrante, MD, and Allan Lara, MD; “Pediatric Mobility and Seating: Best Practices for Early Intervention and Advocacy” by Dell Children’s Pediatric Rehabilitation Center therapy program manager Catherine Harrison, PT, DPT, and Jackie James, OT, ATP; and “Lower Extremity Spasticity Management: Serial Casting, Toxin, and Orthopedic Referral” by assistant professor of neurology Faheem Mahomed, MD.“We are excited that we impacted a greater number of therapists with our educational offerings this year,” said Glendaliz Bosques, MD, chief of the pediatric rehabilitation medicine program. “We value collaboration with community therapists who are dedicated to excellent patient care and hope to continue offering these opportunities.”
January 13, 2026, Filed Under: NewsFerrante Featured in Neurology Today Article on White Matter Development in Preterm Infants Assistant neurology professor and neonatal neurologist Leah Ferrante, MD, was a featured expert commentator in a Neurology Today article entitled “Skin-to-Skin Care May Impact White Matter Development in Preterm Infants.” The article reported on a recent Neurology publication whose authors found an association between skin-to-skin care and neonatal white matter microstructure in frontolimbic tracts involved in socioemotional development and stress regulation. Ferrante told Neurology Today that the findings affirm what she and other clinicians see in the NICU and in long-term outcomes.
January 10, 2026, Filed Under: NewsWelcome, Dr. Xu Join us in welcoming Lori Xu, MD, a pediatric neurologist who specializes in pediatric stroke. Dr. Xu is an assistant professor in the Department of Neurology. She graduated with an undergraduate degree from Washington University in St. Louis, then earned her medical degree from The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. She completed her pediatric neurology residency at The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center and a fellowship in pediatric stroke at the University of Washington School of Medicine. Her research interests include Moyamoya disease.
January 6, 2026, Filed Under: News12 Faculty Members Named Austin Monthly’s Top Doctors of 2026 In the most recent list of Austin Monthly’s Top Doctors, our program’s faculty once again dominated the selections related to pediatric neurological care. Our team accounted for 12 of the 16 pediatric neuroscience physicians, including seven of nine child neurologists, both pediatric neurosurgeons, two of four pediatric physical medicine and rehabilitation specialists, and the only pediatric neuro-ophthalmologist. Congratulations to these dedicated physicians! Kristen Arredondo, MD Glendaliz Bosques, MD Dave Clarke, MD Jane Edmond, MD Daniel Freedman, DO Duriel Hardy, MD M. Omar Iqbal, MD Louisa Keith, MD Dhruve Jeevan, MD, MA Faheem Mahomed, MD Sara Pavitt, MD E. Steve Roach, MD
January 6, 2026, Filed Under: carousel, NewsRegistration Open: Third Annual IMPRES Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery Conference The Dell Children’s Comprehensive Pediatric Epilepsy Center is hosting its third Innovative Minds: Pediatric Research in Epilepsy Surgery (IMPRES) Conference in collaboration with the Lurie Children’s Epilepsy Center from Friday, June 26, to Sunday, June 28, 2026, at Hotel Van Zandt in downtown Austin. Register now by scanning or clicking on the QR code below. For additional information, visit the event website or email dcmcepilepsy@ascension.org. This conference gave me a lot to think about and remember. In addition to the medical knowledge that was presented, the physicians I spoke with told stories that inspired the way I think about advocating for patients who are disadvantaged, which I hope to sustain when it comes to making clinical decisions with my team. AMAZING conference. Inspiring, educational, and enriching in so many different ways. Great speakers. Great program. Dr. Clarke was an excellent host and organizer. Topics were very well selected. Many speakers had international experience and provided a global flair offering different points of view or vision. Featured Speakers Keynote Speaker: Carter Snead III, MD, Professor Emeritus, University of Toronto; Scientist Emeritus, SickKidsDave Clarke, MD, Dell Children’s Medical CenterJim Riviello, MD, Texas Children’s HospitalZachary Grinspan, MD, MS, NewYork-Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical CenterAhmed Abdelmoity, MD, Children’s MercyBernice Martin Lee, CEO, Epilepsy Foundation of AmericaIlene Miller, Director, Rare Epilepsy NetworkM. Omar Iqbal, MD, Dell Children’s Medical CenterRosalia Costello, PsyD, Dell Children’s Medical CenterHoward Weiner, MD, Texas Children’s HospitalMonika Jones, JD, CNP, Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery AllianceRana Said, MD, Children’s Health/UT SouthwesternDaniel Arndt, MD, Specialists in Pediatric Neurology PLLCSteven Wolf, MD, Boston Children’s Health PhysiciansDaniel Freedman, DO, Dell Children’s Medical CenterJorge A. Vidaurre, MD, Nationwide Children’sRosario DeLeon, PhD, Dell Children’s Medical CenterElysa Widjaja, MD, Lurie Children’sLiberty Hamilton, PhD, University of California, BerkeleyGabrielle Conecker, MPH, SCN8A Alliance, DEE-P Connections, and The Inchstone ProjectAlison Kukla, MPH, CURE EpilepsySandi K. Lam, MD, MBA, Lurie Children’sSookyong Koh, MD, Children’s NebraskaRaheel Ahmed, MD, PhD, University of Wisconsin–MadisonJorge Gonzalez-Martinez, MD, PhD, University of Pittsburgh Medical CenterDhruve Jeevan, MD, Dell Children’s Medical CenterChelsey B. Ortman, MD, Dell Children’s Medical CenterKaren Evankovich, PhD, Dell Children’s Medical CenterJanet Wilson, APRN, CPNP-PC, Dell Children’s Medical CenterAllie Melendez-Zaidi, MD, PhD, El Paso Children’s HospitalEmily Ramirez, DO, Dell Children’s Medical Center
