Improving neonatal neurologic care and outcomes for vulnerable babies
What We Do
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Dr. Chalak’s lab focuses on improving neonatal neurologic care and outcomes for vulnerable babies through the NeuroNICU clinical program, Neonatal Neurology Fellowship, and NIH research program. Her research addresses asphyxia, hypothermia, and neonatal brain injury, supported by multiple federally funded awards. Current projects include studying cerebrovascular autoregulation and neuronal biomarkers in hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (HIE), as well as neuronal and inflammatory biomarkers in neuronal injury pathways. She has led the PRIME mild asphyxia collaborative study and pioneered a “Neurovascular bundle” for real-time evaluation of the coupling of cerebral blood flow and neuronal activity in newborns with asphyxia. Her interdisciplinary research team includes physiologists and biomedical engineers working on this novel neurovascular bundle. Dr. Chalak’s research integrates translational studies in a piglet model of asphyxia with clinical trials aimed at optimizing neuroprotection and developing novel physiological biomarkers of brain health. Her collaborative efforts include nationally funded networks such as the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and the Neonatal Research Network (NRN).
