Soaleha Shams, PhD

Soaleha Shams, PhD, is a Canadian neuroscientist interested in neuroscience of social behavior, both typical and atypical expressions. Shams studies social behavior of zebrafish as a tool to understand other social vertebrates and to make disease models for neuropsychiatric disorders. Shams completed her PhD in behavioral neuroscience in Toronto, postdocs in pharmacology (in Gothenburg, Sweden) and in genetics and molecular biology at the Mayo Clinic. She recently moved back to continue her work in Canada using more omics approaches towards bigger questions about effects of environment, social experience, and isolation on zebrafish social behavior. Outside the lab, Shams love teaching, outreach, and science advocacy, and she looks forward to playing an active role in the coming future of neuroscience policymaking in Canada and globally.