Principal Investigator

 Ersin Yavas is an assistant professor of Psychology at Bartın University, Turkey.

Dr. Yavas earned his Ph.D. from the University of Leicester in the Department of Neuroscience, Psychology & Behavior in the UK. His doctoral research focused on dopamine modulation by various neuromodulators and neurotransmitters in the nucleus accumbens, utilizing techniques such as Fast Scan Cyclic Voltammetry, Microdialysis-HPLC, fMRI, and behavior test battery. This work was conducted under the supervision of Associate Professor Dr. Andrew Young.

Following his Ph.D., Dr. Yavas held a postdoctoral position at the Translational Neuroimaging and Systems Neuroscience Lab in the Biomedical Engineering Department at PENNSTATE-USA. His research primarily involved investigating functional brain connectivity networks, particularly in the hippocampus, through the combination of resting-state fMRI and Optogenetics with rodents, under the adviser of Professor Dr. Nanyin Zhang.

Subsequently, Dr. Yavas held another postdoctoral position at the Fanselow Lab, University of California, Los Angeles-USA, under the advisor Professor Dr. Michael Fanselow. Here, his main research interest focused on exploring the relationship between neuropeptides and fear learning and memory using transgenic animals, particularly through the midbrain.

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