Benjamin D Auerbach

Benjamin D Auerbach is an Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in the Department of Molecular & Integrative Physiology and a full-time member of the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology. He also holds affiliate status with the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology.

• Education: B.A. from Cornell University, Ph.D. in Neuroscience from MIT, and Postdoctoral training at the Center for Hearing and Deafness, SUNY Buffalo.

Dr. Auerbach’s research focuses on experience-dependent plasticity and synaptic mechanisms in the rodent auditory system, particularly in relation to autism spectrum disorders and hyperacusis. His lab employs in vivo electrophysiology, optogenetics, and biochemical analysis to uncover pathophysiological mechanisms for translational therapies.

Notable scientific awards include the NARSAD Young Investigator Award, Blavatnik Award for Young Scientists Regional Nomination, and multiple Society for Neuroscience and University at Buffalo accolades. His work is funded by the National Institute of Health and the Brain and Behavior Research Foundation.