معرفی
Leah Acker is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology and Assistant Research Professor in Neurobiology at Duke University School of Medicine. Her clinical and research work centers on neurocognitive outcomes in surgical patients, with affiliations spanning Duke's neuroscience and anesthesiology units.
Education:
Residency in Anesthesiology (Duke University, 2017–2022); M.D. (Duke University, 2017); Ph.D. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2014)
Research Focus:
Dr. Acker investigates EEG-based biomarkers for predicting postoperative delirium, neural mechanisms of cognitive resilience in aging, and brain-heart-immune interactions. Her work integrates neurophysiology, translational models, and clinical anesthesiology to improve outcomes in older surgical patients.
Publication Trends:
Her 15 most recent articles (2014–2025) reveal a strong emphasis on perioperative neurocognitive disorders, EEG signal analysis, and biomarker discovery. Earlier work includes optogenetics and primate neuroscience, evolving toward clinical applications in geriatric anesthesiology and delirium prediction.
Grants & Funding:
- Neural Mechanisms Underlying Attentional Resilience in the Aging Brain (2024–2029)
- The Role of the Aging Brain-Heart-Immune Axis in Postoperative Delirium (2022–2025)
- Real-time EEG changes with transcutaneous vagus nerve stimulation (2022–2024)
- FAER GEMSSTAR Supplement (2023–2025)
Teaching: Courses include PSY 393 (Research Independent Study), NEUROSCI 755 (Cognitive Neuroscience Research Rotation), and undergraduate neuroscience research courses (NEUROSCI 493/494).
