Junda Zhu - Curriculum Vitae

Profile

Clinical scientist with end-to-end experience running human-subjects research in hospital settings (bedside, OR, and online), spanning electrophysiology and clinical imaging (MRI, CT). I own studies from protocol design through IRB, acquisition, QC, analysis, and reporting, collaborating closely with surgeons, neurologists, and engineers. Hands-on with pre-release recording devices in the clinical environment, including beta-testing next-generation probes and reporting usability and signal-quality findings to the manufacturer. Strong regulatory grounding (GCP, IRB/HSR) and a record of translating technical results into clear evidence for clinical, engineering, and regulatory stakeholders.

Areas of expertise: Human & NHP electrophysiology · Structural & functional neuroimaging (MRI, CT, DTI/fMRI) · Clinical research operations · Pre-release device evaluation · Regulatory (GCP, IRB/HSR) · Behavioral task design · Signal QC & analysis · Cross-functional scientific communication · Project management

Impact & Contributions

Pre-release device evaluation: beta-tested next-generation laminar recording probes in NHP models (Vanderbilt) and human intraoperative research (Cedars-Sinai); delivered structured feedback on signal quality, insertion approach, and drape/sterilization integration to the manufacturer.
Reliable bedside & OR data capture: support ~15 bedside patients and ~10 intraoperative sessions; standardized setup/checklists for stable signal acquisition and smooth sterile-field workflow.
Full study ownership: designed, coded (Python/JS), deployed, recruited, budgeted, and analyzed cognitive/memory/decision-making studies; collected data from 100+ participants (patients & healthy controls) across in-person and online settings.
Clinical & regulatory operations: coordinated IRB submissions/amendments; adhered to GCP/HSR and site SOPs; contributed to site start-up readiness and onboarding/training documentation.
Reproducible analysis: standardized analysis repositories and runbooks; open-sourced a utility library on GitHub to reduce reruns and speed iteration.
Communication & grant enablement: produced figures/briefings for multidisciplinary teams; contributed preliminary datasets supporting successful NIH R01 applications.
Mentorship & training: trained undergraduate and graduate students and authored onboarding SOPs/quick-start guides.

Skills & Tools

Clinical Ops & Regulatory	IRB, GCP/HSR (CITI), AE reporting, site start-up & training, SOPs/checklists
Neuroimaging	Structural & functional MRI, CT; DTI; AFNI, FreeSurfer; electrode localization & anatomical targeting; longitudinal analysis
Neural Data & Analysis	Python, MATLAB, R (10+ yrs); pandas, scikit-learn, PyTorch; SVM/LDA/RNN; dPCA/GAM/mixed-effects; code on GitHub
Experiment Design	Psychtoolbox, PsychoPy/Pavlovia; Cedrus control module; Arduino; eye-tracking
Acquisition & Hardware	Blackrock NeuroPort/CerePlex; Neuralynx; Open Ephys; Neuropixels; Brainsight Vet neuronavigation; NI DAQ; eye-tracking

Experience

Postdoctoral Scientist, Department of Neurosurgery · Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA · 2024–Present

Lead scientist for human intracranial research studies: protocol design, IRB, bedside/OR acquisition, and analysis.

Built and deployed a cognitive-control study (unpublished) for bedside/OR and online use; integrated Cedrus hardware, bilingual prompts, quick practice flow; run across ~15 bedside patients and ~10 intraoperative sessions plus 100+ online participants.
Beta-tested next-generation laminar probes in NHP and human intraoperative settings; delivered usability and signal-quality feedback (insertion angle, impedance/QC checks, sterile-field workflow) to the manufacturer.
Authored SOPs/checklists and pre-op drills; coordinated IRB submissions and amendments; prepared concise data briefs for clinical and engineering teams.
Standardized Python/MATLAB analysis, repositories, and runbooks; built and open-sourced a utility package for reuse and reproducibility.

Postdoctoral Fellow, Biomedical Engineering · Vanderbilt University · 2024

Programmed and operated Brainsight Vet neuronavigation/robotic guidance for nonhuman-primate procedures; planned targets/trajectories and integrated with task workflows.

Ph.D. Candidate, Neuroscience · Vanderbilt University · 2021–2024

Large-scale neurophysiology; adolescent development of working memory; longitudinal imaging; statistical modeling; mentorship.

First-author and collaborative publications (Nature Neuroscience 2025; iScience 2024; J Neurophysiol 2023); reproducible pipelines; mentored undergrad/grad students.

Ph.D. Candidate, Neuroscience · Wake Forest University School of Medicine · 2018–2021

Research Assistant, Neurobiology · Southern University of Science and Technology · 2015–2018

Education & Certifications

Ph.D., Neuroscience · Vanderbilt University, 2024
B.S., Bioinformatics · Southern University of Science and Technology, 2018
CITI Program · GCP (2024–2027); Biomedical Investigators & Key Personnel/HSR (2024–2034); Conflicts of Interest (2024–2028)
HIPAA · Privacy & Security Training (current)
Google Project Management Certificate

Peer-Reviewed Publications [Google Scholar]

Mozumder, R., Wang, Z., Dang, W., Zhu, J., Hammond, B.M., Machado, A., et al. Asynchronous firing and off states in working memory maintenance. Cell Reports, 45(1), 2026.
Zhu, J., Garin, C.M., Qi, X.-L., Machado, A., Wang, Z., Hamed, S.B., Stanford, T.R., Salinas, E., Constantinidis, C. Longitudinal measures of monkey brain structure and activity through adolescence predict cognitive maturation. Nature Neuroscience, 2025.
Zhu, J., Zhou, X.M., Constantinidis, C., Salinas, E., Stanford, T.R. Parallel signatures of cognitive maturation in primate antisaccade performance and prefrontal activity. iScience, 2024.
Zhu, J., Hammond, B.M., Zhou, X.M., Constantinidis, C. Laminar pattern of adolescent development changes in working memory neuronal activity. Journal of Neurophysiology, 2023.
Han, P., She, Y., Yang, Z., Zhuang, M., Wang, Q, Luo, X., Yin, C., Zhu, J., et al. Cbln1 regulates axon growth and guidance in multiple neural regions. PLOS Biology, 2022.
Liu, Y.H., Zhu, J., Constantinidis, C., Zhou, X. Emergence of prefrontal neuron maturation properties by training recurrent neural networks in cognitive tasks. iScience, 2021.
Zhuang, M., Li, X., Zhu, J., Zhang, J., Niu, F., Liang, F., Chen, M., Li, D., Han, P., Ji, S.J. The m6A reader YTHDF1 regulates axon guidance through translational control of Robo3.1 expression. Nucleic Acids Research, 2019.
Yu, J., Chen, M., Huang, H., Zhu, J., Song, H., Park, J., Ji, S.J. Dynamic m6A modification regulates local translation of mRNA in axons. Nucleic Acids Research, 2018.

Editorial & Professional Roles

Editor · The Innovation Life journal · 2024–Present
Editorial Board Member · American Journal of Biomedical and Life Sciences · 2024–Present
Reviewer · Imaging Neuroscience · 2026–Present
Reviewer · Experimental Brain Research · 2026–Present
Reviewer · Frontiers in Computational Neuroscience · 2024–Present
Reviewer · Journal of Neurophysiology · 2020–Present
Member · Society for Neuroscience · 2021–Present

Presentations & Posters

Maturational trajectories of cognitive and prefrontal activity in adolescence. Johns Hopkins University, Jan 2024.
Working memory development in adolescent macaques. Working Memory Symposium 2023, May 2023.
Neuronal activity changes in the macaque prefrontal cortex during adolescence. Society for Neuroscience, Nov 2022.
Structural brain changes of the macaque brain during adolescence. Society for Neuroscience, Nov 2022.
Precision of visuospatial working memory reports in adolescent monkeys. Society for Neuroscience, Nov 2022.
NMDA dependence of serial biases in working memory. CRCNS PI Meeting, Oct 2022.
Prefrontal neural changes in early adolescence related to working memory. Society for Neuroscience, Nov 2021.
Working memory and prefrontal neural activity of macaques in early adolescence. Vision Sciences Society, May 2021.