SFARI

Dennis Choi is a co-discoverer of the physiological mechanism of action of benzodiazepine drugs, a class of drugs used to treat conditions such as seizures, anxiety, and muscle spasms. He is also a pioneer in dissecting processes responsible for pathological neurodegeneration. He holds seven patents for innovative neurological research, and has served as an advisor to the National Institutes of Health, Food and Drug Administration, Institute of Medicine, and National Academy of Sciences.

Marta Benedetti joined the Simons Foundation in 2007 and works with the SFARI team to evaluate and manage the SFARI autism grant portfolio, with particular emphasis on grants in the area of molecular and cellular biology.

Ben Philpot is a Kenan Distinguished Professor in the Neuroscience Center and Department of Cell Biology & Physiology at the University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill.

Kevin Bender is professor in residence in the Department of Neurology at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). His laboratory is interested in understanding how neurons encode information, with a particular focus on cellular mechanisms that mediate and modulate neuronal excitability. They employ a variety of electrophysiological, optical, computational and genetic techniques to probe information processing across neuronal compartments, and test how these processes are altered in neurological disorders, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD).