معرفی
Janina Neufeld is a Principal Researcher and Docent at Karolinska Institutet, where she is affiliated with the Department of Women's and Children's Health and the Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders (KIND). She leads her own research team focusing on synesthesia, autism, and perception, and is also part of Sven Bölte's research group on autism, ADHD, and other neurodevelopmental conditions.
Dr. Neufeld earned her PhD in Human Neuroscience from Hannover Medical School (2012), followed by postdoctoral training at the Center of Neurodevelopmental Disorders at Karolinska Institutet (2014-2018) and the University of Reading (2012-2014). Her research focuses on neural correlates and behavioral markers of Autism Spectrum Condition (ASC) and ASC-related symptoms, with particular interest in biomarkers of symptom severity, social cognition deficits, altered reward functioning, and sensory processing in ASC. Since 2019, she has led a project investigating the link between ASC and synesthesia using twin studies. As a Pro Futura Scientia fellow, she is also studying associations between synesthesia and various mental health conditions including obsessive-compulsive disorder.
Her methodological expertise includes Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Eye-Tracking, Electromyography, and Psychophysics. Her research frequently employs twin study designs to disentangle genetic and environmental influences on neurodevelopmental conditions. Analysis of her recent publications reveals strong emphasis on co-twin control methodologies to address familial confounding, with research spanning brain connectivity in autism, sensory processing differences, and the relationship between synesthesia and neurodevelopmental conditions.
- Principal Researcher, Department of Women's and Children's Health, Karolinska Institutet (2022-present)
- Docent, Karolinska Institutet (2024)
- Treasurer for Junior Faculty, Karolinska Institutet (2022-present)
- Research team leader, Team Neufeld, Karolinska Institutet (2022-present)
- Member, Junior Faculty Steering Group, Karolinska Institutet (2022-present)
- Guest editor, Scientific Reports (2022)
Dr. Neufeld has secured multiple competitive grants from the Swedish Research Council and the Bank of Sweden Tercentenary Foundation. Her work has significant clinical implications for identifying new biomarkers and interventions for autism while advancing fundamental understanding of human perception and neurodevelopment. She mentors PhD students Yating Huang and Hjalmar Nobel Norrman in her research team.
