Maria L. Medalla, PhD

Associate Professor, Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Biography

Dr. Medalla’s work combines cellular in vitro electrophysiological methods with multi-scale anatomic techniques to understand the biophysical and synaptic properties of neurons within prefrontal cortical (PFC) networks in non-human primate and rodent animal models. Her expertise includes patch-clamp recording, pathway tract-tracing, multiple immunohistochemical labeling techniques for light and electron microscopy (EM), 3D serial EM, and confocal microscopy. The major goal of her work is to understand how distinct limbic, sensory and motor networks interact and are controlled by the PFC – the central executive of the brain. Her current focus is on the medial prefrontal anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) in rhesus monkeys, an area important for attention, emotions and context-to-action transformations, and is selectively disrupted in many affective disorders such as depression and anxiety disorders.

Publications

  • Published 8/11/2025

    Qiang Y, Gu W, Jang D, Shin Y, Shi D, Seo KJ, Li G, Vinnikova S, Wu S, Iyer A, Artoni P, Ryu J, Bai T, Dhawan V, Medalla M, Rosene DL, Moore TL, Koppes AN, Koppes R, Liou JY, Chandrasekaran C, Cui XT, Wang S, Fang H. Monolithic three-dimensional neural probes from deterministic rolling of soft electronics. Nat Electron. 2025 Aug; 8(8):721-737. PMID: 40951322.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 7/9/2025

    McCann RP, Bowley B, Pessina M, Yang Q, Xin H, DeVries SA, Wang M, Zhang Y, Chopp M, Zhang Z, Rosene DL, Zeldich E, Medalla M, Moore TL. Reduction of inflammatory biomarkers underlies extracellular vesicle mediated functional recovery in an aged monkey model of cortical injury. Front Aging Neurosci. 2025; 17:1605144. PMID: 40703679.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 5/23/2025

    Tsolias A, Mojica CA, Yamani R, Khanna SD, Abdullatif SA, Snyder BJ, Chang W, Guillamon-Vivancos T, Goodliffe J, Capriglione AL, Palanca ILT, Martinez J, Campbell JD, Luebke JI, Zeldich E, Medalla M. Transcriptional and functional profiles of muscarinic receptor-expressing neurons in primate lateral prefrontal and anterior cingulate cortices. bioRxiv. 2025 May 23. PMID: 40475401.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 9/30/2024

    Cheng CH, Guan Y, Chiplunkar VP, Mortazavi F, Medalla ML, Sullivan K, O'Callaghan JP, Koo BB, Kelly KA, Michalovicz LT. Nerve agent exposure and physiological stress alter brain microstructure and immune profiles after inflammatory challenge in a long-term rat model of Gulf War Illness. Brain Behav Immun Health. 2024 Dec; 42:100878. PMID: 39430882.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 9/27/2024

    DeVries SA, Dimovasili C, Medalla M, Moore TL, Rosene DL. Dysregulated C1q and CD47 in the aging monkey brain: association with myelin damage, microglia reactivity, and cognitive decline. Front Immunol. 2024; 15:1426975. PMID: 39399501.

    Read at: PubMed

View All 56 Publications:   View Full Profile in BUMC

Other Positions

  • Graduate Faculty (Primary Mentor of Grad Students)
    Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, Graduate Medical Sciences

Websites

Education

  • Boston University, PhD
  • University Philippines, BS

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