Catherine Chu, MD, MA, MSc Co-Director of the Brain Dynamics Lab
Dr. Catherine Chu is the Director of Child Neurology and Pediatric Epilepsy at Johns Hopkins University and Vice President of Neurology at Kennedy Krieger Institute. In this role, she supports a large faculty of inspired academic child neurologists and pediatric epileptologists to pioneer multidisciplinary and patient-centered care programs, advance mechanistic insights and discover novel treatments to combat disease, and train the next generation of physician leaders in child neurology and epilepsy.
Prior to this position, she grew up on Bainbridge Island and then pursued a degree in Biological Psychology at the University of Washington, where she graduated as the Presidential Medalist. Dr. Chu then spent 25 years at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, where she completed her medical training, clinical training in child neurology, epilepsy, and neurophysiology, and served as faculty. She also completed graduate training in social anthropology at Harvard University, supported by a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship and a Fulbright award, and graduate training in medical science at Harvard Medical School, supported by the Clinical Investigator Training Program. She is board-certified in Neurology (with special qualifications in Child Neurology), Epilepsy, and Neurophysiology. While faculty at MGH, Dr. Chu served as program director of the child neurology residency, founded and directed the neonatal and pediatric continuous EEG program, and oversaw the 10-fold expansion of a rewarding pediatric epilepsy surgery and neuromodulation program.
Clinically, Dr. Chu cares for patients with refractory epilepsy and abnormal neurophysiology, specializing in developmental neurophysiology, epileptic encephalopathy, neurosurgical planning, and responsive neuromodulation.
Dr. Chu’s laboratory has received over 15 years of continuous federal funding, as well as support from foundations, philanthropy, and collaborates with biotech companies and large academic teams. Her lab’s large goals are to identify critical oscillations and neurophysiological biomarkers in neurodevelopmental disorders, memory and cognition, and epilepsy and novel neurostimulation approaches to optimally disrupt pathologic activity and support cortical function.
