Lab Members | UCSF Neurodevelopmental Assessment and Imaging Lab

Principal Investigator

Carly Demopoulos, Ph.D.

Associate Professor in Residence, UCSF Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences & Radiology and Biomedical Imaging

Carly Demopoulos, Ph.D. is a clinical neuropsychologist and developmental neuroscientist with expertise in multimodal neuroimaging, particularly magnetoencephalography (MEG). Her research focuses on autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and related neurodevelopmental disorders. She completed her postdoctoral fellowship at UCSF in the Biomagnetic Imaging Laboratory (BIL) and Sensory Neurodevelopment and Autism Program (SNAP). Her clinical training at UCSF focused on pediatric epilepsy, movement disorders, and the neonatal intensive care unit follow-up program. She has over 20 years of experience working with children with ASD and other developmental disabilities in assessment, home-based treatment, and educational settings.

Staff

Emma Salzman Psy.D.

Clinical Psychologist

Emma Salzman, PsyD is a licensed clinical psychologist and Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at UCSF. She specializes in comprehensive diagnostic evaluations for a range of neurodevelopmental disorders, including autism spectrum disorders. She has an interest in supporting minimally verbal individuals with autism across the lifespan and has specialized training in the assessment of these individuals. Emma has a strong interest in behavioral phenotyping, differential diagnosis, implementation of NDBI’s, contextual factors impacting development, emotion regulation within families, and parent and family resiliency. She provides a variety of services to individuals with NDDs and also enjoys modifying evidence-based treatment practices for individuals with autism and/or intellectual disabilities. She also enjoys her time teaching and supervising clinical psychology graduate students and is nationally recognized trainer in the Autism Diagnostic Observation Schedule (ADOS-2). She is involved in a number of behavioral phenotyping clinical research projects including individuals with known genetic conditions like Down Syndrome and 16p.11 deletion syndrome.

Zoey Zhang

Staff Research Associate

Zoey Zhang graduated from UC Davis before completing her Masters of Science in Biomedical Engineering at San Jose State University. She has experience with EEG data and signal processing and is excited to learn more about the benefits of MEG data at NAIL. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her cat, Simba.

Katrina Wong

MD/PhD Student

Katrina joined the NAI Lab in 2024 as a clinical research coordinator and is now a medical student at UCSF. She graduated from UC Berkeley in 2024 with degrees in Molecular & Cellular Neurobiology and Psychology. During her time at Berkeley, she worked in the Wilbrecht Lab studying mouse models of autism and early-life stress. Her research interests include neurodevelopmental disorders, developmental plasticity, and neuromodulation. Outside of the lab, Katrina enjoys running in Golden Gate Park or along the beach, and exploring new restaurants and cafés.

Linda Tracy

Clinical Research Coordinator

Linda joined the NAI Lab in 2025 as a clinical research coordinator. She graduated from Stockholm University, Sweden with a PhD in Neurochemistry with molecular neurobiology. She has previous research experience with neuroinflammation and is excited to learn more about autism and clinical research. In her free time, she enjoys hiking and exploring new parks with her dog.

Jakob Weiner

Clinical Research Coordinator

Jakob joined the lab as a Clinical Research Coordinator in 2025. He graduated from UC Santa Barbara with a B.S. in Psychology and Brain Sciences, where he also worked as a behavioral therapist for children with autism. His interests include neuromodulation, clinical interventions, and improving clinical care for neurodevelopmental disorders. In his free time, Jakob enjoys playing the drums, listening to the rock band Ween, and has recently gotten into website building (as you can see by this wonderful site).

Olivia Seargeant

Staff Research Associate

Olivia Seargeant graduated from UC San Diego with a B.S. in Cognitive and Behavioral Neuroscience, where she worked in the Molecular Cognition Lab and competed on the women’s water polo team. She went on to complete her M.S. in Cognitive Neuroscience at Durham University in the UK, where she researched the impacts of adverse early life experiences on social touch processing in young adults. Her interests include using multimodal neuroimaging and neuromodulation tools to better understand and improve care for neurodevelopmental disorders like ASD and ADHD. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, going to the beach, and exploring local coffee shops around the city.

Caroline Hall-Sherr

Research Assistant

Caroline joined the lab as a research assistant in the Fall of 2024. She is a fourth year undergraduate student at UC San Diego, and will graduate with a B.S. in Cognitive Science and a B.A. in Linguistics. She’s interested in all things speech processing, including the role of speech perception in production and speech processing in clinical populations. Her hobbies include the visual arts (she is an avid oil-painter), weightlifting, and choral singing.

Current Students

Lauren Kotin

Clinical Psychology Psy.D. Student

Lauren joined the lab as a clinical psychology Psy.D. student for training in autism diagnostics and neuropsychological assessment in 2026. She is a student at the Wright Institute, and her current interests include neurodevelopmental assessment and child and adolescent mental health. She hopes to provide supportive and compassionate care to families of those navigating a variety of neurodevelopmental challenges. Outside of her work, Lauren enjoys hiking with her partner and dog, being active, and spending time with family and friends.

Roshni Narasimhan

Clinical Psychology Psy.D. Student

Roshni joined the lab as a clinical psychology Psy.D. student for training in autism diagnostics and neuropsychological assessment in 2023. She is a student at the Wright Institute, and her current research focuses on facial and vocal emotional expressions in children with autism, with a broader interest in how affective communication relates to social and emotional functioning. Outside of the lab, Roshni enjoys creating digital art and making music.

Annie Lakhani

Clinical Psychology Ph.D. Student

Annie joined the lab as a clinical psychology Ph.D. student for training in autism diagnostics and neuropsychological assessment in 2024. She is a member of the Behavioral Research and Assessment in Neuropsychology Lab at Palo Alto University and is interested in pediatric neuropsychology and child and adolescent mental health. Annie enjoys exploring the outdoors, spending time with friends, and indulging in the company of her beloved kitty, Frankie.

Previous Lab Members

The NAIL lab has been fortunate to work with an exceptional group of staff, students, and volunteers who have contributed to our research and clinical efforts over the years.