Soraya Scuderi, PhD
Associate Research Scientist - Child Study CenterDownloadHi-Res Photo
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Associate Research Scientist - Child Study Center
Biography
Soraya Scuderi is an Associate Research Scientist in the Vaccarino Lab - Yale University . She earned her BS and MS in Cellular and Molecular Biology and her PhD in Neuropharmacology from the University of Catania, Italy. She completed postdoctoral training at Yale Child Study Center where she started using iPSC derived organoid's technology to model brain development. The challenge of treating human brain disorders lies in the complexity of the nervous system formation. Scuderi's research focuses on understanding specification of brain regions and deciphering transcriptomic and molecular networks underlying those processes by using neural organoids. She is part of the Brain Initiative project “Engineering of organoid-based brain circuits" PIs Prof. F. Vaccarino and Prof. A. Levchenko.
Last Updated on October 31, 2023.
Appointments
Child Study Center
Associate Research ScientistPrimary
Other Departments & Organizations
Education & Training
- PhD
- University of Catania, Neuropharmacology (2015)
- MSc
- University of Catania, Molecular Cellular Biology (2011)
- BS
- University of Catania, Department of Biological, Geological and Environmental Sciences (2009)
Research
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Overview
Medical Research Interests
Nervous System Diseases; Neural Tube; Neurons; Organoids; Stem Cells
ORCID
0000-0001-5126-2009- View Lab Website
Vaccarino Lab
Research at a Glance
Yale Co-Authors
Frequent collaborators of Soraya Scuderi's published research.
Publications Timeline
A big-picture view of Soraya Scuderi's research output by year.
Research Interests
Research topics Soraya Scuderi is interested in exploring.
Flora Vaccarino, MD
Alexej Abyzov, PhD
Alexandre Jourdon, PhD
Jessica Mariani, PhD
Livia Tomasini
Adriana Cherskov
25Publications
1,356Citations
Organoids
Neurons
Neural Tube
Publications
2025
Engineering human neuronal diversity: Morphogens and stem cell technologies for neurodevelopmental biology
Scuderi S, Khouri-Farah N, Rauthan R, Natu A, Wang H, Nelson A, Jourdon A, Vaccarino F. Engineering human neuronal diversity: Morphogens and stem cell technologies for neurodevelopmental biology. Stem Cell Reports 2025, 20: 102615. PMID: 40930068, PMCID: PMC12447334, DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2025.102615.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsNeural tube patterningStem cell technologyTube patterningTranscription factor networksComplex assortmentFactor networksPluripotent stem cellsNeuronal cellsPatterns in vivoCell technologyProgenitor cellsEmbryonic tissuesNeurodevelopmental biologyBrain-on-chipNeuropsychiatric disordersHuman brain developmentStem cellsBrain developmentCellsBrain organoidsPatterning processMorphogenTranscriptionBrainStemSpecification of human brain regions with orthogonal gradients of WNT and SHH in organoids reveals patterning variations across cell lines
Scuderi S, Kang T, Jourdon A, Nelson A, Yang L, Wu F, Anderson G, Mariani J, Tomasini L, Sarangi V, Abyzov A, Levchenko A, Vaccarino F. Specification of human brain regions with orthogonal gradients of WNT and SHH in organoids reveals patterning variations across cell lines. Cell Stem Cell 2025, 32: 970-989.e11. PMID: 40315847, PMCID: PMC12145255, DOI: 10.1016/j.stem.2025.04.006.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsGradient of WntGene expression programsSingle-cell transcriptomicsBrain lineagesMorphogen gradientsEpigenetic variationDorso-ventral axisShh signalingExpression programsMorphogenFetal human brainHuman iPSC linesPluripotent stem cellsCell linesNeuronal lineageNeural tubeShhWntLineagesLine-to-line variationEarly patterningPattern systemPattern variationHuman brain regionsIPSC lines
2023
Early Neuronal Differentiation/patterning of the Human Pallium, Modeling by in Vitro Systems, and Disruption in Developmental Disorders
Scuderi S, Jourdon A, Vaccarino F. Early Neuronal Differentiation/patterning of the Human Pallium, Modeling by in Vitro Systems, and Disruption in Developmental Disorders. 2023, 423-442. DOI: 10.1002/9781119860914.ch20.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsConceptsCentral nervous systemDorsal-anterior partHuman cortexCortical developmentInhibitory neuronsSingle-cell omicsAnimal modelsNervous systemCortical layersMammalian brainBrain regionsCortical formationPopulations of excitatoryTangential migrationAltered developmentCortical structuresAnterior partCortical patterningPrecursor cellsEarly neuronal differentiationIncoming afferentsCortexNeuronal differentiationNeuronsHuman specificityNeonatal loss of FGFR2 in astroglial cells affects locomotion, sociability, working memory, and glia-neuron interactions in mice
Stevens H, Scuderi S, Collica S, Tomasi S, Horvath T, Vaccarino F. Neonatal loss of FGFR2 in astroglial cells affects locomotion, sociability, working memory, and glia-neuron interactions in mice. Translational Psychiatry 2023, 13: 89. PMID: 36906620, PMCID: PMC10008554, DOI: 10.1038/s41398-023-02372-y.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsFibroblast growth factor receptor 2Anxiety-like behaviorAttention deficit hyperactivity disorderAstroglial cellsGrowth factor receptor 2Reduced anxiety-like behaviorGlia-neuron interactionsAstroglial cell functionEarly postnatal periodFactor receptor 2Early postnatal lossPostnatal mouse brainWeeks of ageDeficit hyperactivity disorderGlial cellsGlutamine synthetase expressionBehavioral deficitsPostnatal periodReceptor 2Floxed miceHGFAP-CreMouse brainNeonatal lossPostnatal astrogliaPostnatal loss
2021
Cell-to-Cell Adhesion and Neurogenesis in Human Cortical Development: A Study Comparing 2D Monolayers with 3D Organoid Cultures
Scuderi S, Altobelli GG, Cimini V, Coppola G, Vaccarino FM. Cell-to-Cell Adhesion and Neurogenesis in Human Cortical Development: A Study Comparing 2D Monolayers with 3D Organoid Cultures. Stem Cell Reports 2021, 16: 264-280. PMID: 33513360, PMCID: PMC7878838, DOI: 10.1016/j.stemcr.2020.12.019.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords
2020
Complex mosaic structural variations in human fetal brains
Sekar S, Tomasini L, Proukakis C, Bae T, Manlove L, Jang Y, Scuderi S, Zhou B, Kalyva M, Amiri A, Mariani J, Sedlazeck F, Urban AE, Vaccarino F, Abyzov A. Complex mosaic structural variations in human fetal brains. Genome Research 2020, 30: gr.262667.120. PMID: 33122304, PMCID: PMC7706730, DOI: 10.1101/gr.262667.120.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsSingle nucleotide variantsCopy number variantsStructural variantsMegabase-scale copy number variantsHuman fetal brainFunctional consequencesMobile element insertionsSimilar functional consequencesFetal brainMosaic single-nucleotide variantsAdult brain neuronsStructural variationsPotential functional consequencesKilobase scaleDNA eventsGenomic fragmentDifferent chromosomesElement insertionsClonal approachHuman brain cellsFetal human brainNucleotide variantsReplication errorsHuman brainNumber variantsPsychENCODE and beyond: transcriptomics and epigenomics of brain development and organoids
Jourdon A, Scuderi S, Capauto D, Abyzov A, Vaccarino FM. PsychENCODE and beyond: transcriptomics and epigenomics of brain development and organoids. Neuropsychopharmacology 2020, 46: 70-85. PMID: 32659782, PMCID: PMC7689467, DOI: 10.1038/s41386-020-0763-3.Peer-Reviewed Reviews, Practice Guidelines, Standards, and Consensus StatementsCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsRecent single-cell technologiesGene regulatory networksSingle-cell technologiesMulti-omics investigationsPluripotent stem cellsTranscriptional dynamicsBrain developmentCell fateEpigenomic datasetsRegulatory networksElement activityNeural lineagesStem cellsBrain organoidsOrganoidsBiological modelsFetal brainPsychENCODEBrain biologyMajor questionsEpigenomicsFetal tissuesTranscriptomicsLineagesBiologyThe role of somatic mosaicism in brain disease
Jourdon A, Fasching L, Scuderi S, Abyzov A, Vaccarino FM. The role of somatic mosaicism in brain disease. Current Opinion In Genetics & Development 2020, 65: 84-90. PMID: 32622340, PMCID: PMC7749073, DOI: 10.1016/j.gde.2020.05.002.Peer-Reviewed Reviews, Practice Guidelines, Standards, and Consensus StatementsCitationsAltmetricChapter 5 Induced pluripotent stem cells as models of human neurodevelopmental disorders
Jourdon A, Mariani J, Scuderi S, Amiri A, Wu F, Yuen E, Abyzov A, Vaccarino F. Chapter 5 Induced pluripotent stem cells as models of human neurodevelopmental disorders. 2020, 99-127. DOI: 10.1016/b978-0-12-814409-1.00005-7.ChaptersCitationsConceptsPluripotent stem cellsStem cellsStudy of speciesHuman neurodevelopmental disordersEpigenome analysisGene regulationIPSC fieldGenomic variationGene expressionGenetic backgroundDisease modelingStudies of neurodevelopmentIPSCsExperimental approachNeurodevelopmental disordersTranscriptomeGenomeCellsCell phenotypingSpeciesExperimental design issuesPhenotypeRegulationExpressionPhenotyping
2018
Transcriptome and epigenome landscape of human cortical development modeled in organoids
Amiri A, Coppola G, Scuderi S, Wu F, Roychowdhury T, Liu F, Pochareddy S, Shin Y, Safi A, Song L, Zhu Y, Sousa AMM, Gerstein M, Crawford G, Sestan N, Abyzov A, Vaccarino F, Akbarian S, An J, Armoskus C, Ashley-Koch A, Beach T, Belmont J, Bendl J, Borrman T, Brown L, Brown M, Brown M, Brunetti T, Bryois J, Burke E, Camarena A, Carlyle B, Chae Y, Charney A, Chen C, Cheng L, Cherskov A, Choi J, Clarke D, Collado-Torres L, Dai R, De La Torre Ubieta L, DelValle D, Devillers O, Dracheva S, Emani P, Evgrafov O, Farnham P, Fitzgerald D, Flatow E, Francoeur N, Fullard J, Gandal M, Gao T, Garrett M, Geschwind D, Giase G, Girdhar K, Giusti-Rodriguez P, Goes F, Goodman T, Grennan K, Gu M, Gürsoy G, Hadjimichael E, Hahn C, Haroutunian V, Hauberg M, Hoffman G, Huey J, Hyde T, Ivanov N, Jacobov R, Jaffe A, Jiang Y, Jiang Y, Johnson G, Kassim B, Kefi A, Kim Y, Kitchen R, Kleiman J, Knowles J, Kozlenkov A, Li M, Li Z, Lipska B, Liu C, Liu S, Mangravite L, Mariani J, Mattei E, Miller D, Moore J, Nairn A, Navarro F, Park R, Peters M, Pinto D, Pochareddy S, Polioudakis D, Pratt H, Price A, Purcaro M, Ray M, Reddy T, Rhie S, Roussos P, Sanders S, Santpere G, Schreiner S, Sheppard B, Shi X, Shieh A, Shin J, Skarica M, Song L, Sousa A, Spitsyna V, State M, Sullivan P, Swarup V, Szatkiewicz J, Szekely A, Tao R, van Bakel H, Wang Y, Wang D, Warrell J, Webster M, Weissman S, Weng Z, Werling D, White K, Willsey J, Wiseman J, Witt H, Won H, Wray G, Xia Y, Xu M, Yang Y, Yang M, Zandi P, Zhang J, Zharovsky E. Transcriptome and epigenome landscape of human cortical development modeled in organoids. Science 2018, 362 PMID: 30545853, PMCID: PMC6426303, DOI: 10.1126/science.aat6720.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetric
Academic Achievements & Community Involvement
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Honors
honor Yale Mentoring Award for postdoctoral scholars 2024
05/23/2024Yale University AwardOffice of the Provost and the Yale Postdoctoral AssociationDetailsUnited Stateshonor Yale Child Study Center Pilot Research Award
02/01/2021Yale University AwardChild Study CenterDetailsUnited States
News
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News
- May 01, 2025Source: Yale News
How Molecular Traffic Cops Guide Development of the Human Brain
- February 07, 2025
2024-2025 YCSC postdoctoral scholar travel awardees announced
- June 24, 2024
Inaugural YCSC postdoctoral scholar travel awardees announced
- June 03, 2024Source: Yale Kavli Institute for Neuroscience
2024 Postdoc Mentor Award