OUR TEAM

Heidi Schambra, MD | Principal Investigator

Dr. Heidi Schambra is a tenured Associate Professor of Neurology and Rehabilitation Medicine, Associate Chair for Research Strategy in Neurology, Director of the Division of Neuro-Epidemiology, and Director of the Mobilis Lab. Dr. Schambra is a physician-scientist who completed her medical training at Emory University, neurology residency at the Harvard Partners program, and neurorehabilitation fellowship at Burke Rehabilitation Hospital. Following clinical training, Dr. Schambra undertook postdoctoral research fellowships at the National Institutes of Health and Columbia University.  As neurorehabilitation doctor, Dr. Schambra is deeply committed to understanding and accelerating motor recovery after stroke. Dr. Schambra is also an active mentor to the next generation of clinicians and scientists working in neurorehabilitation and neurorecovery. Her research has been continuously funded since 2007 by the NIH, National Science Foundation, and American Heart Association. When not in the lab, she can be found pestering her husband and pets, taxonomizing clouds, and menacing New York on a Citibike.

Yun Shi, OTR/L, PhD | Postdoctoral Fellow

Dr. Shi is an occupational therapist interested in stroke rehabilitation research. She earned her undergraduate degree in Rehabilitation Therapy from Capital Medical University in Beijing, China, and her master's and PhD in Occupational Therapy from New York University. Her research is driven by a passion for understanding the psychosocial aspects of stroke recovery, with a focus on addressing individuals’ unique needs and developing interventions that empower them to lead more fulfilling lives despite illness. For her postdoctoral work, Dr. Shi focuses on movement anxiety in individuals with stroke, investigating its key drivers and the resulting motor effects. Beyond her professional pursuits, she enjoys traveling to beaches, visiting aquariums, and playing various puzzle games. She has also been learning to play the ukulele, though her progress has been gradual.

Myriam Taga, MSc, PhD | Postdoctoral Fellow

Dr. Taga is a neuroscientist aiming to identify neural pathways that can be targeted to improve recovery after stroke. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Health, Science and Technology from ETH, Zurich; a dual Masters degree in Neurosciences from UCL, London and ENS/UPMC, Paris; and a Doctorate in Neurosciences in the Department of Neurorehabilitation at UEL, London. Her research focuses on understanding human movement control and motor recovery to design better neurorehabilitation therapies. By combining electroencephalography (EEG), MRI, and transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), she probes different neural pathways that play a key role in motor control. Before joining the lab, she used simultaneous TMS-EEG in combination with robot-mediated training to identify neural pathways involved in motor adaptation and learning. During her internship at Harvard (Berenson-Allen Center for Noninvasive Brain Stimulation), she investigated the neuromodulatory mechanisms of repetitive TMS in treatment-resistant depression. Her postdoctoral research in the lab seeks to identify neural pathways that are important for the recovery of motor function in stroke patients. Beside her great passion for neuroscience, she gives her brain a rest by devoting her mornings to a daily yoga practice and enjoys attending the theatre.