ICARE: Interagency Collaborative to Advance Research in Epilepsy

Epilepsy research needs reach across the missions of multiple NIH Institutes and Centers and across many organizations outside the NIH.  As the primary NIH Institute for epilepsy research, NINDS leads this working group, with broad representation from the NIH, other Federal agencies, and the research and patient advocacy communities. Annual meetings provide a forum for sharing information about ongoing and planned epilepsy research activities, highlighting advances and discussing needs and opportunities, and promoting increased collaboration toward common research goals.

View All ICARE Meetings

ICARE Member Organizations and Primary Representatives

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)
Walter Koroshetz, MD, ICARE Chair
Director

Miriam Leenders, PhD
Program Director
Channels, Synapses, and Neural Circuits Cluster

Vicky Whittemore, PhD
Program Director
Channels, Synapses, and Neural Circuits Cluster

National Institute on Aging (NIA)
Bradley C. Wise, PhD
Chief, Division of Neuroscience, Neurobiology of Aging Branch

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
Qi-Ying Liu, MD, MSci
Program Director, Division of Neuroscience and Behavior

National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering (NIBIB)
Rishi Mathura, PhD
Scientific Program Specialist, Office of Program Evaluation and Strategic Partnerships

National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS)
Anne R. Pariser, MD
Director, Office of Rare Diseases Research

National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
Melissa Parisi, PhD
Branch Chief, Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Branch

Tracy King, MD
Medical Officer, Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Branch

National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)
Roger Sorensen, PhD, MPA
Branch Chief, Division of Neuroscience and Behavior, Integrative Neuroscience Branch

National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI)
Amanda Conti
Policy Analyst, Policy and Program Analysis Branch

National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Kristin Burns, MD
Medical Officer, Division of Cardiovascular Sciences

Olga Tjurmina, PhD
Health Scientist Administrator

National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Marjorie Garvey, MBBCh
Program Officer, Division of Translational Research

National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
Martha Matocha, PhD
Branch Chief, Division of Extramural Science Programs, Symptom Science and Genetics; Self-Management

Fogarty International Center (FIC)
Kathleen Michels, PhD
Program Director, Division of International Training and Research

Other Federal Partners

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Rosemarie Kobau, MPH, MAPP
Epilepsy Program Team Lead, CDC Epilepsy Program
National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention
and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP)

Niu Tian, MD, PhD
Medical Officer, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention
and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP)

Department of Defense (DOD)
Anthony Pacifico, PhD
Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs 
Epilepsy Research Program

Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Phil Sheridan, MD
Medical Officer, Division of Neurology 
Products Center for Drug Evaluation and Research (CDER)

Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)
Yasmin Mazloomdoost, MPH, MSW
Public Health Analyst, Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB)

Marie Mann, MD, MPH
Senior Medical Advisor

Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)
Aatif Hussain, MD
Acting National Director, Epilepsy Centers of Excellence

Glenn Graham, MD
Deputy National Director, Neurology

Amanda Hund, MD
Contracting Specialist

Nongovernmental Organizations

American Epilepsy Society (AES)
Eileen Murray, MM, CAE 
Executive Director

Douglas Coulter, PhD
AES President

AES/NINDS Epilepsy Research Benchmarks Stewards
Eric Marsh, MD, PhD
AES/NINDS Benchmark Stewards Committee Chair

Citizens United for Research in Epilepsy (CURE)
Laura Lubbers, PhD
Chief Scientific Officer

Beth Lewin Dean, MPA, MBA
Chief Executive Officer

Susan Axelrod, MBA
Founding Chair

Dravet Syndrome Foundation
Mary Anne Meskis
Executive Director

Veronica Hood, PhD
Scientific Director

Epilepsy Foundation (EF)
Jackie French, MD
Chief Medical and Innovation Officer

Brandy Fureman, PhD
Chief Outcomes Officer

Caitlin Grzeskowiak, PhD
Senior Director of Research & Innovation

Epilepsy Leadership Council (ELC)
Amy Brin, MSN, MA, PCNS-BC
Chair of ELC

Epilepsy Study Consortium 
Jackie French, MD
President and Director

Dennis Dlugos, MD, MSCE
Vice President

Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI)
Jessica McCreary, MPH
Program Officer

Theresa Kim, PhD, MS
Program Officer

Pediatric Epilepsy Research Foundation (PERF)
Roy Elterman, MD
President

Deborah Hirtz, MD
Board Member

Tuberous Sclerosis Alliance (TS Alliance)
Kari Luther Rosbeck
President and Chief Executive Officer

Steve Roberds, PhD
Chief Scientific Officer