Staff

Sepideh Hariri, PhD
Instructor in Anaesthesia
Program Manager

Dr. Sepideh Hariri received her PhD in Physics with a research focus in Biophysics and Medical Imaging, from University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, in 2013. Since then, she has been an active educator and researcher. Sepideh also received her BSC in Physics from Amirkabir University of Technology in Iran and her MSc in Applied Mathematics and Statistics from Iran University of Science and Technology. Following her lifelong passion for exploring the deeper dimensions of life and empowering others to find well-being, Sepideh joyfully serves the center as the Program Manager and is an Instructor of Anesthesia at HMS. Her current research is focused on the use of meditation-based interventions to better understand and enhance brain health, cognition, and optimal aging.

 

Preeti U. Reed, MBBS, MPH, DIPPM
Instructor in Anesthesia
Staff Scientist

Preeti completed her residency in Internal Medicine at Kathmandu University before shifting her focus to pursue a career in global health. Preeti has a Masters of Public Health from the University of Sydney and a Diploma in Global Project Management from Torrens University with an emphasis on leadership and management. She joined Dr. Subramaniam’s lab in July 2019 as a Clinical Research Fellow where she executed study design & implementation, data analysis, and project management for mind-body intervention (MBI) research. Her work in these trials has resulted in multiple publications in reputed peer-reviewed journals along with articles in the Harvard Health Blog. Her current research focuses on the impact of MBI on various clinical populations (e.g.: Long Covid & Parkinson's Disease). She aspires to eventually impact policy changes to address disparities in access to holistic healthcare.

 

Tulsi Mehta Chase, EdM
Head of Education and Outreach

Tulsi Mehta Chase, EdM is an International wellness educator with over 2,000 hours of training from the renowned Classical Hatha Yoga School at Isha Yoga Centre, India. With a BA in Movement Studies from Pomona College and an EdM from the Harvard Graduate School of Education, she has designed and facilitated wellness workshops and trainings for more than seven years. Tulsi has led numerous wellness initiatives for people ages 7-75, in various communities from small towns in India to big cities in the United States, including for leaders at Harvard, Google, and Amazon. She brings creativity, passion, and a strong spiritual foundation to her work in education, community outreach, and to her art.

 

Priyam Mathur, MS
Project Manager

Ms. Mathur graduated from Purdue University with a BS in Biology and a BA in Communication and Media studies. She continued to Indiana University, where she completed her Master's in Health Informatics. Priyam's interest in data management led her to an internship with Dr. Subramaniam's lab where she then worked as the project lead for the NIH-funded Dynamic Biomarkers trial. She is currently a Project Manager with Sadhguru Center. Her expertise is in data management of complex biomarker datasets and large grant-funded clinical trials.

 

Nashaw Jafari, MA
Project Administrator

Nashaw graduated from Emperor’s College with a Master of Acupuncture (MAc) with a Chinese Herbal Medicine specialization. She received her MA degree in Clinical Psychology from Alliant International University. She graduated from Soka University of America with a BA degree in Liberal Arts and a concentration in Social and Behavioral Sciences. Nashaw supports with outreach, research, and administration.

 

 

Rashmi Borah, MS
Regulatory Specialist

Rashmi Borah has an MS in Regulatory Affairs from Northeastern University, an MS in Microbial Technology from Amity University in Uttar Pradesh, India and a BS in Zoology from the University of Delhi in India. She has worked as a regulatory project manager at Aleon Pharma International, Inc in Parsippany, NY, a clinical research assistant at the Health Technology Laboratory at Northeastern University, and a clinical/regulatory intern at Nocion Therapeutics in Waltham, MA.

 

Morgan McCarthy
Communications Specialist

Morgan McCarthy received her BS in Sociology from Salem State University. She has previously worked as a Social Media Specialist and a Social Media and Marketing Manager. Morgan supports communication efforts at the center focusing on social media and marketing.

 

 

Maria Gonçalves, PhD
Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Dr. Gonçalves is a chemist, neuroscientist and educator who holds a PhD degree in Neurosciences with a focus on Neuropsychiatry (Federal University of São Paulo, Brazil, 2018). Her main scientific interest is to better understand how the brain, the gut and the immune system respond to external factors such as stressful routines and eating habits. She is passionately moved by the purpose of offering integrative approaches to reduce neuropsychiatric symptoms and to promote mental health and wellbeing to those in need. Dr. Gonçalves is currently a Postdoctoral Research Fellow studying the gut-brain connection.

 

Rushil Vladimir Ramachandran, MBBS 
Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Rushil received his medical degree (MBBS) from the Jawaharlal Institute of Post-graduate Medical Education and Research and completed his residency in Anesthesiology, Pain Medicine and Critical Care from All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, India. He worked as a senior resident in Anesthesia, heading the team in settings of routine as well as emergency surgeries, intensive care units, preoperative assessment, respiratory assessment, code-blue, labor analgesia, etc. His research activities during his residency involved labor analgesia. His research interests include perioperative outcomes, delirium, total intravenous anesthesia, cognition and labor analgesia.

 

Zaid Hussain, MBBS
Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Dr. Zaid Hussain received his MBBS from Kasturba Medical College in Manipal Academy of Higher Education in India. During his medical education, he also worked as a Research Intern in Cleft and Craniofacial Research at Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research in Chennai, India and thereafter as the research coordinator at the Cleft & Craniofacial Centre in Chennai. He has also worked as an emergency room physician at the Sundaram Medical Foundation in Chennai and hopes to train in the fields of emergency and critical care medicine.

 

Tahereh Shamsi, MD
Postdoctoral Clinical Research Fellow

Tahereh obtained her MD from Shiraz University of Medical Sciences in Shiraz, Iran. She engaged in medical practice and held the position of head of the COVID-19 task force in Iran. In the United States, she commenced her American experience as a postdoctoral clinical research fellow at TUFTS Medical Center, in the Rheumatology Division. Later, in February 2024, she became a Clinical Research Fellow at SCCP, working under the guidance of Dr. Subramaniam. Her research focuses on various areas such as perioperative outcomes, delirium, anesthesia, and pain management.

 

Alkananda Behera, MD
Research Fellow

Alkananda received her medical degree (MBBS) and completed her residency in Anesthesiology, Pain Medicine and Critical Care from All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, India. She underwent further training as a Senior Resident in Anesthesia, independently involved in pediatric, obstetric, critical care, trauma and other high-risk surgeries, from the same institute. She joined SCCP in August 2021 as a Clinical Research Fellow under the mentorship of Dr. Subramaniam. Her research interests include perioperative outcomes, cognition studies, regional anesthesia and pain management.

 

Enas Mohamed, MD, MMSc-GHD
Clinical Research Fellow

Enas Mohamed graduated from the University of Technological Science in Sudan. She practiced medicine in Sudan and the United Arab Emirates. In May 2021, Enas earned her Master's degree in Social Medicine and Global Health Delivery from Harvard Medical School. She currently works as a research assistant at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Enas is passionate about topics related to social medicine and uses her qualitative research skills to understand different communities' perspectives toward wrong cultural practices that can cause harm to their health. Currently, Enas advocates against female genital mutilation in USA.

 

Riku Ihalainen, PhD, MSC
Postdoctoral Research Fellow

Dr. Riku Ihalainen holds a PhD in Computer Science from the University of Kent and an MSc. in Cognitive Neuropsychology from the University of Sheffield, City College. His work focuses on brain connectivity and understanding the interplay between neural activity, cognition, behavior, and consciousness. His main scientific interests include altered states of consciousness, neuroimaging, statistical methods, and music cognition.

 

Hibiki Orui, MA
Biostatistician

Hibiki Orui graduated from Boston University with a Masters of Arts in Biostatistics. He is interested in analyses of clinical research and observational studies. His main focus is to ensure the research project/studies are appropriately designed, properly analyzed, and suitably interpreted for the collaborators.

 

 

Akila Rayapuraju, BA
Project Administrator

Akila completed her BA with a major in Cell Biology & Neuroscience and a minor in Creative Writing at Rutgers University, New Brunswick. During her time at university, she worked on various research projects ranging from the effects of oxytocin receptors in the spinal cord and DRG on tactile sensitivity, to the impact of mindfulness-based practices on student wellbeing and perception of social groups in higher education. She also served on the executive board of Active Minds, the largest student-run mental health organization at Rutgers University. Akila is interested in studying mind-body therapies as a way to promote mental health and overall well-being.

 

Sydney Friedopfer
Clinical Research Coordinator I

Sydney received her BA in Economics and English at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, TN, and subsequently worked in finance for four years. Prior to joining our department, she shifted careers and received her BS in Psychology from the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, UT, starting her journey towards becoming a psychologist. She has prior research experience in clinical neuropsychology and worked at a treatment center for people experiencing substance use disorders as a psychological technician. Sydney is interested in finding accessible and sustainable methods, such as mind-body interventions, to treat substance use disorders and other mental health conditions long-term.

 

Van Nguyen
Clinical Research Assistant

Van Nguyen received her BS in Biochemistry from Emmanuel College in Boston. Prior to joining our department, she has worked as a research assistant and tutor at Emmanuel College and a pharmacy technician at CVS.

 

 

 

Braiden DeSchryver
Clinical Research Assistant

Braiden DeSchryver received his BS in Human Physiology from the University of Iowa in Iowa City, IA. He has worked as a lead undergraduate research assistant at the Medical Research Center in Iowa City and an assistant laboratory technician at Core Laboratories in Iowa City.

 

 

Morgan Pratt
Clinical Research Assistant I

Morgan Pratt received her BS in Biology, with a Neuroscience concentration, along with minors in Italian and Business from The Pennsylvania State University at State College. As an undergraduate, she studied emotion regulation and human development in the Cole Emotion Regulation Lab at Penn State. Her current interest is in the exploration and application of mind-body interventions in autonomic nervous system disorders.

 

 

Anne K.Aly
Administrative Coordinator

Anne has her BS from City University of New York in Community Health Education. She is currently studying at Liberty University online for her Master’s in Public Health, which she expects to receive next Spring 2025. Before joining our department, Anne worked at Brigham and Women’s Hospital as a practice assistant in Urology, a data analyst at CDC Foundation and an emerging clinical operation assistant at PAREXEL International in Billerica, MA.