Twain Dai

Twain Dai is a PhD student and casual teaching staff member at the University of Western Australia's School of Biological Sciences, conducting research in A/Prof Jennifer Rodger's Brain Plasticity Lab. Her work focuses on developing precision medicine approaches for depression treatment using MRI biomarkers and rTMS.

Her educational background includes:

• Master of Biomedical Science (Neuroscience) with Distinction, University of Western Australia, 2022
• Current PhD candidate, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia

Twain's research integrates preclinical animal models and human clinical trials to identify MRI-based biomarkers predicting rTMS treatment response for depression. Key interests include neural plasticity mechanisms, functional connectivity analysis, and translational applications of neuroimaging. Her methodology emphasizes automated data pipelines for behavioral analysis and multimodal MRI processing.

Her 2023 publications establish foundational work in rodent depression models, examining cognitive affective bias tests versus forced swim tests and chronic stress-induced functional connectivity alterations. These studies reveal striatal and nucleus accumbens network disruptions, advancing reproducible biomarker identification for depression pathophysiology.

As a PhD researcher, Twain actively contributes to the Brain Plasticity Lab's mission through collaborative projects with neuroscientists, clinicians, and data specialists. Her current work bridges preclinical findings with clinical applications to optimize rTMS parameterization for individualized depression therapy.