Mattis Lab – Dissecting the circuit mechanisms of epilepsy

Our long-term goal is to develop new epilepsy treatments that are rationally designed to target precise circuit elements. We investigate how neuronal circuits are dysfunctional in epilepsy, and how these circuits can be modified to improve seizures.

The Mattis Lab is located in the Ann Arbor campus of the University of Michigan. We are affiliated with the Department of Neurology and with the Michigan Neuroscience Institute (MNI). The lab was founded June 2022, and we have built a vibrant and productive lab community!

BSRB

Research

Our research combines slice and in vivo electrophysiology, optogenetics, chemogenetics, and imaging techniques (2-photon and fiber photometry) in preclinical experimental models of epilepsy. We use this approach to study

The role of subcortical neuromodulatory networks in seizures
How subcortical neuromodulatory networks are chronically impacted in epilepsy

The role of subcortical neuromodulatory networks in seizures

The impact of chronic epilepsy on neuromodulatory networks

Lab News

May 19, 2026 - Impromptu “reunion” in Japan!
Krystal (current PhD student, taking a well-deserved holiday) and Ruitao (the lab's most recent undergrad alum, soon to start a PhD program) managed to meet up in Japan.

May 07, 2026 - Welcome, Anastasia!
We are excited to welcome a new student, Anastasia Minkova, to the lab! Anastasia brings a strong research background (in cognitive neuroimaging) and is a future pediatrician. She will join Krystal in studying mechanisms of SUDEP. Welcome, Anastasia!

May 02, 2026 - Ruitao receives honors for his thesis work
Ruitao graduated with High Honors in Neuroscience and received the Undergraduate Program in Neuroscience Director’s Award for his thesis. Congratulations, Ruitao!

Apr 27, 2026 - Graduation dinner to celebrate Ruitao and Saif
We celebrated our lab's graduating seniors by taking them out to dinner, along with their mentors/ close collaborators in the Mattis lab. Saif is a co-author on two recent manuscripts from the lab, based upon his innovative method for detecting seizures on long-term EEG recordings; he will be taking a gap year to broaden his clinical experience while he applies to medical school, and will continue his work in the lab, adapting his method for rapid/on-line seizure detection. Ruitao is a co-first author on the lab's recent publication characterizing hyperthermia-evoked seizures in a mouse FCD model, and will be a co-author on another paper in preparation for submission later this year; he will be moving to Georgia Tech for a PhD. We are grateful to them both for their contributions to the lab, and look forward to hearing great things as they move forward in their careers. Congratulations, Saif and Ruitao!

Apr 22, 2026 - Undergraduates present their research
Congratulations to Ruitao, Farah, and Sreyashi for their great posters, presented today across two undergraduate research symposia on campus! Ruitao presented his senior thesis work characterizing hyperthermia-evoked seizures in an FCD mouse model, corresponding with the recently accepted manuscript on which he is a co-first author. Farah presented her UROP project quantifying activation of serotonergic neurons in mice with differential risk of SUDEP -- and was awarded a Blue Ribbon Award for her poster! (Congrats, Farah!) Sreyashi presented her U@MNI project developing an analysis strategy for hierarchical data, which will be useful across multiple projects in the lab. It was great to see all of their hard work recognized!

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