Sora Shin

Sora Shin is an Assistant Professor at Virginia Tech's Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise, affiliated with the Fralin Biomedical Research Institute. Her research focuses on understanding brain circuit mechanisms underlying stress-induced psychiatric disorders, particularly how early life adversity affects mental health and behaviors like binge-eating. She holds a PhD in Medical Science from Yonsei University College of Medicine.

Research Interests: Brain circuits, stress response, eating disorders, and the neurobiology of early life trauma. Her lab uses optogenetics, in vivo imaging, and viral tracing to study neural circuits.

Awards: Includes the NIH-NIDDK R01 grant for studying food overconsumption circuits and the Seale Innovation Fund Award for stress-related hyperalgesia research.

Grants & Advising: PI on multiple grants, including iTHRIV and TRDRP awards. Advises students like Yeeun Bae.

Labs: Leads the Shin Lab, part of the Center for Neurobiology Research, exploring translational models of stress-related psychiatric diseases.