Dara Manoach is a professor of psychology in the Department of Psychiatry
and a Lurie Center for Autism Faculty Associate at Massachusetts General
Hospital (MGH) and Harvard Medical School. She directs the Sleep, Cognition and
Neuropsychiatry (SCAN) lab at the Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical
Imaging at MGH.

Dr. Manoach is a neuropsychologist who has devoted her career to
understanding the neural bases and nature of cognitive deficits in
neurodevelopmental conditions, particularly schizophrenia and autism, so that
they can be effectively treated. The goals of her research program are to (i)
illuminate the mechanisms underlying abnormal sleep physiology in these disorders;
(ii) understand the contribution of abnormal sleep to cognitive
differences, symptoms, and sleep disruption; (ii) develop sensitive
biomarkers of sleep-dependent cognition; and (iii) evaluate targeted
treatments. Her lab uses multimodal neuroimaging, intracranial studies,
non-invasive brain stimulation, cognitive testing, and polysomnography to meet
these goals. She collaborates with both clinical and basic investigators
doing complementary work.

Dr. Manoachs career goals are to mentor the next generation of clinical
scientists and to conduct research that substantially expands our understanding
of neurodevelopmental conditions, provides insights into pathophysiology, and
leads to interventions that significantly improve quality of life.

Dr. Manoach received her doctorate from Harvard University in experimental
psychology, completed a clinical psychology internship at McLean Hospital, and
a postdoctoral fellowship in clinical neuropsychology at Beth Israel Hospital
of Harvard Medical School before joining MGH.