Derek Southwell

Derek Southwell is an Associate Professor of Neurosurgery, Associate Professor in Pathology, and Associate Professor in Neurology at Duke University, with additional appointments as Assistant Professor of Cell Biology and Assistant Research Professor in Neurobiology. He is a Faculty Network Member of the Duke Institute for Brain Sciences and an Affiliate of the Duke Regeneration Center. His education includes a B.S. from MIT, M.D. and Ph.D. from UCSF, and residencies at Stanford and UCSF.

His research focuses on cortical inhibitory circuits, epilepsy, and movement disorders. Key interests include understanding inhibitory circuit design in humans and mice, and advancing interneuron transplantation for neural repair. Recent publications emphasize neural engineering, cell-based therapies, epilepsy interventions, and surgical innovations.

Recent scientific awards include the Holland-Trice Scholarship (2022), Translating Duke Health Scholar (2018), and Whitehead Scholar (2018). He directs grants such as the NIH-funded study of inhibitory interneurons for epilepsy treatment (2024-2039) and leads the Neurobiology Training Program (2024-2029).