Faculty
Our faculty is composed of advisors, co-directors, and those responsible for disciplines. Our professors are trained in specialized areas of Neurology and Neuroscience and different areas of knowledge. All professors hold, at least, a Ph.D. degree, and most of them have a ‘sandwich’ doctorate or postdoctoral abroad; they lead consolidated research groups and exchange knowledge with national institutions and abroad; attend teaching activities at the undergraduate and graduate levels, guide and/or supervise students of scientific initiation, masters, doctoral, postdoctoral, and interns.
For the registration in the program, the professor must meet the strict criteria established and USP regulations based on the activities developed in the last five years..
Full advisors
Alan Luiz Eckeli
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences-FMRP
He holds a degree in Medicine from the Federal University of Santa Catarina (2001).
He is currently a Professor of Neurology and Sleep Medicine at the FMRP – USP.
He has experience in the area of Medicine, with emphasis on neurology, acting on Sleep Medicine.
Américo Ceiki Sakamoto
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences-FMRP
He graduated in Medicine from the Ribeirão Preto Medical School, USP (1975),
Medical Residency in Neurology (1976-1977), and Clinical Neurophysiology (1978) at
the General Hospital of Ribeirão Preto (HCRP).
He holds a PhD in Neurology from the Ribeirão Preto Medical School, USP (1985),
postdoctoral fellow at the CLEVELAND CLINIC FOUNDATION, Section of Epilepsy
and Clinical Neurophysiology, Cleveland, USA (1988-1990), postdoctoral fellow at the
EPILEPSY CENTER BETHEL, Bielefeld, Germany (1990-1992).
He is currently a PROFESSOR of the Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral
Sciences, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, USP, where he established the CIREP –
Center for Epilepsy Surgery of HCRP, being currently its director (1994-present).
He participated in the establishment of Unipete-Center for Research and Treatment of
Epilepsy, and was the co-coordinator of Escola Paulista de Medicina, UNIFESP (2000-
2009).
He participates in the board of advisors of the graduate programs in Neurology and
Neurosciences (Ribeirão Preto Medical School) and Neurosciences (Paulista School of
Medicine).
He was the Former President of the Brazilian League of Epilepsy and Brazilian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology.
Ana Paula Andrade Hamad
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences – FMRP
Graduated in Medicine from the Escola Bahiana de Medicina e Saúde Pública. Medical residency in Child Neurology and specialization in Epilepsy and Clinical Neurophysiology – EEG and Video-EEG – from the Federal University of São Paulo. Master’s and Doctorate in Neurology from the Federal University of São Paulo, with a sandwich period held at the Bethel Epilepsy Center, Bielefeld, Germany. Specialization in pediatric epilepsy – Bethel Epilepsy Center. Title of Specialist in Neurology from the Brazilian Academy of Neurology. Title of Specialist in Clinical Neurophysiology (Electroencephalography) by the Brazilian Society of Clinical Neurophysiology. Currently, she is a PhD Professor at the Faculty of Medicine of Ribeirão Preto-USP – working in Child Neurology/Child Epilepsy.
Antonio Carlos dos Santos
Internal Medicine Department-FMRP
CNPq Research Productivity Fellow-Level A
Currículo Lattes
He graduated in Medicine from the Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo (FMRP-USP) in 1983, Medical Residency in Neurology at the General Hospital of Ribeirão Preto (1984-1986), and Specialization in Neuroradiology in the Department of Diagnostic Imaging of the Paulista School of Medicine (1987-1988).
He completed a master’s degree in Neurology from FMRP-USP in 1992 and a doctorate in the same program in 1998. He was hired as a professor in 1994 by FMRP-USP, and held a postdoctoral degree at the Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Laboratory – Montreal Neurolocial Institute – McGill University – Quebec – Canada (2000-2001).
He became a “Livre Docente” in 2008 and a Full Professor in 2013. He is currently a full professor at the University of São Paulo (USP), MS-6, working in the division of Radiology, Department of Internal Medicine, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, in the Center of Imaging Sciences and Medical Physics, where he is the coordinator of the Section for Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Neuroradiology Sector, in addition to being the coordinator of the Center for Imaging Sciences and Medical Physics, General Hospital, FMRP-USP.
He has experience in imaging diagnostics, with emphasis on Neuroradiology and quantitative neuroimaging techniques, including structural imaging, spectroscopy, BOLD functional imaging, DTI, perfusion, and vascular imaging.
He coordinates the research group “Study of neuronal injury mechanisms using quantitative magnetic resonance techniques.”
He is a member of the Brazilian Society of Neuroradiology, the Brazilian Academy of Neurology, and the São Paulo Society of Radiology.
Carlos Ernesto Garrido Salmon
Department of Physics-FFCLRP
He holds a degree in Nuclear Engineering from the Instituto Superior de Ciencias y Tecnologias Nucleares (1996) and a doctorate in Physics from the University of São Paulo (2005). He is currently a PhD (associate) professor at the University of São Paulo.
He has experience in Biomedical Engineering, with emphasis on Biological Signal Processing, acting mainly on: Quantitative Techniques in MRI, in vivo spectroscopy, brain connectivity, neurovascular coupling, and quantification of paramagnetic ions in tissues.
Cláudia Ferreira da Rosa Sobreira
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences-FMRP
She holds a degree in Medicine from the Ribeirão Preto Medical School of the University of São Paulo (1987) and a doctorate in the Graduate Program in Neurology from the FMRP-USP (1996), during which she completed an internship abroad -Department of Neurology of Columbia University (1994).
She is currently a PhD professor at the FMRP-USP.
She has experience in the field of Medicine – Neurology, with emphasis on muscle and mitochondrial diseases, acting mainly on myopathies, mitochondrial dysfunction, mitochondrial diseases especially those of the respiratory chain, including enzymatic assays of the respiratory chain and molecular studies of mitochondrial DNA.
Cristina Marta Del Ben
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences-FMRP
She graduated in Medicine from the State University of Londrina (1988) and completed the Medical Residency in Psychiatry (1989 – 1992) at the HCFMRP-USP.
She holds a master’s degree (1995) and a doctorate (2000) in Medicine (Mental Health) from the University of São Paulo. She completed a postdoctoral internship at the Neurosciences and Psychiatry Unit, University of Manchester, United Kingdom (2002-2003).
She was the coordinator of the Graduate Program in Mental Health of FMRP-USP (2004-2010).
She is currently an associate professor in the Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences, FMRP-USP. She also coordinates the Integrated Management Service of Psychiatric Emergency and Early Intervention of the HCFMRP-USP. She is the co-chair of the Committee of Medical Residency at the HCFMRP-USP and the Vice-Coordinator of the Center for Support of Research on the Mental Health of the Population (NAPSaMP), University of São Paulo, Brazil.
She has experience in the field of Medicine, with emphasis on Psychiatry, focusing on the Neurobiology of Anxiety and Emotion Processing; Emergency Psychiatry and Early Intervention; and Epidemiology and Social and Biological Determinants of Mental Disorders.
Daniel Giansante Abud
Internal Medicine Department-FMRP
He is the coordinator of the Therapeutic Neuroradiology and Interventional Radiology Service of the HCFMRP-USP. “Livre-Docência” from FMRP-USP (2015). He holds a PhD in Neurology from FMRP-USP (2009) and a Residency in Interventional Neuroradiology (2002-2005) at the Adolphe de Rothschild Foundation, University of Paris.
He has a Residency in Radiology and Imaging Diagnosis at HCFMRP-USP (2002) and a Medical Degree from the FMRP-USP (1998). He is an advisor of the Doctorate and Master Programs and Professional Master in Neurology, Radiology, and Internal Medicine Programs at the FMRP-USP. He is the Former President (2017-2018) of the Brazilian Society of Interventional Radiology and Endovascular Surgery (Sobrice).
He has experience in the areas of Therapeutic Neuroradiology and Interventional Radiology, especially in the endovascular treatment of aneurysms, arteriovenous malformation and arteriovenous fistula, carotid stenoses, and hyperacute ischemic stroke.
Elaine Aparecida Del Bel Belluz Guimarães
Department of Basic and Oral Biology – FORP
CNPq Research Productivity Fellow-level 1B
Elaine Del-Bel is a full professor of Physiology at FORP-University of Sao Paulo since October 2013. She holds a master’s and PhD (1988) in Pharmacology from FMRP-USP in Ribeirão Preto, and a Postdoctoral in England (Manchester University).
Fabiola Dach
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences-FMRP
She has a Medical Degree from the Federal University of Santa Catarina, Florianópolis, SC, Residency in Neurology at the Hospital Governador Celso Ramos (Servidores do Estado de Santa Catarina), Florianópolis, SC, and a PhD in Neurology from the FMRP-USP.
She has been a Professor of Neurology at FMRP-USP since 2014, responsible for the Headache Outpatient Clinics (adult and childhood), Neuropathic Pain, General Neurology, and the Neurology Ward at the HCFMRP-USP. She provides assistance, teaching, and research in the areas of neurology, headache and pain.
Felipe Villela Gomes
Department of Pharmacology-FMRP
He is a PhD Professor in the Department of Pharmacology of the FMRP-USP. He holds a degree in Pharmacy from the School of Pharmacy and Biochemistry of the Federal University of Juiz de Fora (2008), a master’s degree (2009-2011), and a doctorate (2011-2015) in Biological Sciences (Pharmacology) from the FMRP-USP. He was a postdoc fellow at Dr. Anthony Grace, University of Pittsburgh (May / 2015-Dec / 2018). He is a member of the Education Committee of the Schizophrenia International Research Society (SIRS). He receives financial assistance from the Young Researcher Program of FAPESP, working on the following topics: (de)regulation of the dopaminergic system, stress as a risk factor for the development of schizophrenia, and new pharmacological targets for the treatment of schizophrenia. (Lattes Curriculum: 07/07/2021).
Jaime Eduardo Cecilio Hallak
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences-FMRP
He holds a Medical Degree from Universidade Federal do Triângulo Mineiro (1990), a master’s degree in Medicine (Mental Health) from the University of São Paulo (1998), a doctorate in Medicine (Mental Health) from the University of São Paulo (2002), and a postdoc from the University of Manchester-England (2003).
He became a “Livre-Docente” from FMRP-USP in 2013. He is currently an associate professor at the Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences (FMRP-USP).
He is also an Adjunct Professor at the University of Alberta-Canada. He has experience in the field of Medicine-Psychiatry, with an emphasis on neuroimaging and psychopharmacology, acting mainly on schizophrenia, clinical and experimental psychopharmacology, temporal lobe epilepsy, and structural and functional neuroimaging techniques.
He was the Coordinator of the Graduate Program in Mental Health of FMRP in the last quadrennial and is currently Deputy Coordinator of the Graduate Programs in Mental Health and Neurology/Neurosciences of FMRP-USP (both Grade 7 by CAPES). From 2008 to 2015, he coordinated the Regional Center of Ribeirão Preto of the INCT for Translational Medicine of the CNPq. Currently, in the new edition of the Notice, the INCT for Translational Medicine was one of the renewed Institutes, now under the Coordination of Prof. Jaime E. C. Hallak. CNPq productivity fellow 1A.
João Pereira Leite
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences-FMRP
CNPq research productivity Fellow-Level 1A-CA MD-Medicine
He holds a Medical degree from the FMRP-USP (1984). He obtained a master’s degree in Neurology from the Escola Paulista de Medicina – UNIFESP (1990), a doctorate in Medicine (Neurology) from the Federal University of São Paulo (1992), and “Livre-Docência” in Neurology from FMRP-USP (2001). He is currently a Professor, Head of the Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences, and he coordinates the Graduate Program in Neurology of FMRP-USP (Grade 7 by CAPES for 3 consecutive evaluations). He was the chairman of the FMRP-USP Research Committee from 2006-2009..
Luzia Iara Pfeifer
Department of Health Sciences-FMRP
CNPq research productivity Fellow-Level 2
She is an associate professor/RDIDP of the FMRP-USP, Department of Health Sciences-Division of Occupational Therapy.
She holds a degree in Occupational Therapy from the Federal University of São Carlos (1986), a master’s degree in Special Education (Education of People with Disabilities) from the Federal University of São Carlos (1994), a doctorate in Education from the Federal University of São Carlos (1999), a postdoctoral degree from Deakin University, Geelong-Australia (2010), and “Livre-Docência” from FMRP-USP (2015).
Maria José Alves da Rocha
Department of Basic and Oral Biology – FORP
CNPq research productivity Fellow-Level 2
She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences from FMRP-USP, a Master’s degree in Pharmacology, and a PhD in Physiology from the same School. She was a Postdoctoral fellow at Wake Forest University, USA (1990-1991) and Universitaet Tubingen, Germany (1992-1995).
She was an assistant professor (1983-1985) and adjunct professor at UFSC, Santa Catarina (1985-1990). She was hired by USP in 1999 where she is currently an associate professor at FORP – Ribeirão Preto Campus.
She was a member of the Committee on Education (2008-2010) and Internationalization (2012-2014) of the American Physiological Society (APS).
Norberto Cysne Coimbra
Department of Pharmacology-FMRP
CNPq research productivity Fellow-Level 1A
Norberto Cysne Coimbra graduated in Medicine from the Federal University of Espírito Santo (1988). He holds a Master of Science (Magister Scientiae, cum Laude) (Area of Concentration: Neuropsicobiologia) from the FFCLRP –USP (1991), a Doctorate of Science (Scientiae Doctor) (Area of Concentration: the Morphology-Cell Biology from the FMRP-USP, in 1995 (Department of Morphology).
As a former professor of the Morphology Department of FMRP-USP (1991-2001), he moved to the Pharmacology Department of FMRP-USP on 28/2/2001.
He conducted Post-doctoral fellow at the “Pain Imaging Neuroscience (PaIN) Group of the Department of Physiology, Anatomy & Genetics of the University of Oxford” (so-called “Human Anatomy & Genetics Department until December 2005) from 09/01/2006 to 30/06/2006; and the Centre for Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Brain (FMRIB) of Clinical Neurology Department of the University of Oxford, Oxford, England, United Kingdom” from 01/07/2006 to 08/01/2007.
Norberto Garcia Cairasco
Department of Physiology-FMRP
CNPq Research Productivity Fellow-level 1B
He has a degree in Biology-Universidad del Valle, Colombia (1976), a master’s degree in Physiology from the FMRP-USP (1982), and a doctorate in Physiology from the FMRP-USP (1984). Postdoctoral Fellow at Duke University Medical Center (1988-1990).
In 2011 he became an Associate Professor.
Since November 2013, he has been a Full Professor, Ms-6, in R. D. I. D. P. at the Department of Physiology of the FMRP-USP.
Octávio Marques Pontes Neto
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences-FMRP
CNPq research productivity Fellow-Level 2
Medical Degree from the Federal University of Ceará (1999); Medical Residencies in Neurology (2000-2003) and Clinical Neurophysiology (2003-2004) from the HCFMRP-USP. He holds a doctorate in Neurology (2008) and “Livre Docência” in Neurology (2018), both from the FMRP-USP.
Fellowship in Vascular Neurology and Neurosonology at Vall d’hebron Hospital, Barcelona, Spain. Postdoctoral fellow at Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA. He is an Associate Professor of the Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences of FMRP-USP and head of the Vascular Neurology and Neurological Emergencies Service of the HCFMRP-USP.
He has been dedicated to clinical research involving Cerebrovascular Diseases and Neurological Emergencies, mainly addressing the following topics: stroke, thrombolytic therapy, obstructive sleep apnea, cerebral hemorrhage, emergency medical regulation system, transcranial Duplex and cerebral vasoreactivity.
He was the President (2016-2018) and is currently Vice-President of the Brazilian Society of Cerebrovascular Diseases and the Coordinator of the National Stroke Research Network, established by the Ministry of Health (Decit/SCTIE/MS).
Osvaldo Massaiti Takayanagui
Department of Health Sciences-FMRP
CNPq research productivity Fellow-Level 1
He has a Medical Degree from the FMRP-USP (1973), a Master’s degree (1980), and a doctorate (1987) in Neurology from the FMRP-USP. Postdoctoral fellow at the National Institute of Neuroscience, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan (1990).
Professor at the FMRP-USP (2003). He has been a Professor of Neurology at the FMRP-USP since 2007.
He was the Clinical Director of the General Hospital FMRP-USP from 2009 to 2017, the Scientific Director of the Brazilian Academy of Neurology, from 2004 to 2008, a Member of the Ethics Committee of the Brazilian Academy of Neurology, from 2016 to 2020. Awarded the prize: Brazilian Citation Classic of the 1990’s in Neurology by the ISI-Institute for Scientific Information for the article: Takayanagui OM & Jardim E. Therapy for neurocysticercosis.
Rafael Naime Ruggiero
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences – FMRP
Graduated in Biological Sciences from the Faculty of Philosophy, Sciences and Letters of Ribeirão Preto – USP (2007), master’s and doctorate in Sciences – Neuroscience modality from the Faculty of Medicine of Ribeirão Preto (FMRP) – USP. He held a sandwich doctorate in 2015 at the University of Iowa – USA. He is currently a postdoctoral fellow at the Faculty of Medicine of Ribeirão Preto (FMRP) – USP. Main lines of research: cognitive impairment of epilepsy and its electrophysiological correlates, hippocampus-cortical synaptic plasticity, animal models of psychiatric disorders, dopaminergic role in temporal estimation and neurobiological substrates of drug addiction and abuse. It uses as main tools recording and analysis of electrophysiological signal of high density in vivo, optogenetic and pharmacological manipulation during behavioral tasks. He has university extension experience in pre-university education and in the dissemination/popularization of science.
(Currículo Lattes:07/07/2021).
Regina Maria França Fernandes
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences-FMRP
She holds a Medical Degree from the University of Brasilia (1980), a master degree in Neurology from the FMRP-USP (1988), a fellowship in Neonatal Polygraph from Stanford University, CA, USA (1989-91), a doctorate in Neurology from the FMRP-USP (1995), and a fellowship in Sleep Medicine from the Cleveland Clinic, Ohio, USA (1996).
She is an Assistant Professor at the FMRP-USP, where she coordinates the undergraduate discipline in Medicine entitled “Nervous System“, and the graduate discipline in Neurology and Neurosciences, entitled ”Sleep Disorders – Clinical and Laboratory Aspects”.
Taiza Elaine Grespan Santos Edwards
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences-FMRP
Professor Taiza Edwards is graduated in Physical Therapy from the State University of Londrina-UEL; residency in Physical Therapy from the State University of Rio de Janeiro-UERJ; specialization in Neurorehabilitation from the Estácio De Sá University-RJ. She holds a PhD in Neurosciences from the Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences of the Ribeirao Preto Medical School–University of São Paulo (FMRP-USP). She is a full advisor and director of the Brain Stimulation and Motor Control Laboratory at FMRP-USP.
Her first postdoctoral fellowship was focused on vascular neurology and neuroimaging analyses and second post-doctorate was focused on non-invasive brain stimulation and conducted at FMRP-USP with fellowship at Burke Medical Research Institute, USA.
She has advanced training in clinical research methodology and non-invasive brain stimulation (NIBS) from Harvard University, USA.
Her clinical and research expertise has relied on neuro and vestibular rehabilitation, motor control, neuroimaging, clinical trial design, and NIBS.
Tonicarlo Rodrigues Velasco
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences-FMRP
He holds a Medical degree from the Federal University of Uberaba (1992), a master’s degree and a doctorate in Neurology from the University of São Paulo – USP, and a postdoctoral degree from the University of California-Los Angeles (UCLA).
He has experience in the field of Medicine, with emphasis on neurology, acting mainly on difficult-to-control epilepsy, EEG, diagnostic methods in patients with epilepsy, temporal lobe epilepsy, and epilepsy surgery.He is currently the Director of the Adult Epilepsy Surgery Center of the Epilepsy Surgery Center of the HCRP-USP (Cirep); he is responsible for the training of residents, assistant physicians, and graduates at the institution.
Valéria Paula Sassoli Fazan
Department of Surgery and Anatomy-FMRP
CNPq research productivity Fellow-Level 2
She holds a Medical Degree from the FMRP-USP (1991), a master’s degree in Morphology from the FMRP-USP (1995), and a doctorate in Neurology from the FMRP-USP (1999).
She held a sandwich PhD at the University of Iowa, with which she maintains close scientific relations.
She is an associate professor Level II of the FMRP-USP, in the Department of Surgery and Anatomy, being responsible for several undergraduate disciplines, particularly in the courses of Medicine, Physiotherapy, Occupational Therapy, and Biomedical Sciences.
Vitor Tumas
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences-FMRP
Graduated in Medicine from the FMRP-USP (1985), he completed the Medical Residency in Neurology and Clinical Neurophysiology (1986-1990), and has a master’s and PhD in Neurology from the FMRP-USP.
He is currently a full-time Professor of Neurology at the Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences at the FMRP-USP.
He works as a physician, professor, and researcher in the area of Neurology, especially in the areas of Movement Disorders and Behavioral Neurology.
Wilson Marques Junior
Department of Neurosciences and Behavioral Sciences-FMRP
He has a medical degree from the FMRP-USP (1983); a medical residency in neurology from the HCFMRP-USP (1983, 1986); a specialization in the Electromyoneurography from the HCFMRP-USP (1987), a master’s degree in Neuroscience from the University of São Paulo (1988); a specialization in peripheral neuropathies and Electromyoneurography at Louisiana State University (1988-1987); a PhD in Neuroscience from USP (1994); and a postdoctoral from the Institute of Neurology (1997), London University.
He has been a Professor of Neurology at the FMRP-USP since 2007.