The George Lab Research Team

George Lab

Paul George, MD, PhD
Assistant Professor of Neurology & Neurological Sciences

Paul grew up in Tennessee. He obtained his BSE from Tulane University and subsequent masters at Johns Hopkins in biomedical engineering.  He then joined the Health Sciences and Technology program where he obtained a PhD in Medical and Electrical Engineering in Dr. Robert Langer’s lab at MIT and his MD from Harvard.  After this, he journeyed out west to Stanford for his medical training and joined the Neurology faculty in 2016 as an Assistant Professor. His main focus is working with physicians, neuroscientists, and engineers to improve the care of stroke patients and neural recovery through his lab’s research as well as his clinical service.

Postdoctoral Fellows

Dingying Shan, PhD

Dingying received her Bachelors in Biomaterials and Masters in Chemistry from Beijing University of Chemical Technology, where she conducted research on biomaterials for tissue regeneration. She then completed her PhD in Bioengineering from the Pennsylvania State University. Her PhD research focused on designing and synthesizing functional citrate-based biomaterials for applications including nerve regeneration, bioimaging, biophotonics, and bioelectronics. She joined the George Lab in the Summer of 2022. She is interested in applying biomaterial strategies for stem cell modification to advance understanding and treatment of stroke. In both research and life, Dingying likes to learn new knowledge, explore new adventures, and break through her own boundaries.

Lab Manager

Kelly McConnell
Lab Manager

Kelly McConnell received her Bachelor of Science in engineering from Harvey Mudd College in 2017. Her undergraduate research focused on developing a tissue-engineered model of the cornea through electrospinning. She then completed a MSc in Biomedical Engineering from the National University of Ireland, Galway in 2018. Her master's thesis consisted of examining a multi-factor approach to maintaining tenocyte phenotype. She joined the George Lab in the fall of 2018, where she is working on projects to improve neural recovery using the combination of stem cells, conductive biomaterials, and electrical conditioning. 

Graduate Students

Matine Azadian
Neuroscience Graduate Student

Matine is a graduate student in the Neurosciences Interdepartmental Program at Stanford University. He received his BA with honors in Anthropology from the University of California at Irvine, where he was also a research student in the Neurocritical Care Lab. Under Dr. Yama Akbari, Matine worked to uncover the molecular mechanisms of neural recovery following cardiac arrest and was ultimately inspired to pursue a career as a physician-scientist. He joined the George Lab in 2020 and hopes to continue working towards this same goal in various stroke models. In particular, he is interested in the molecular mechanisms by which electrically stimulated stem cells confer functional improvements post-stroke. He also aims to develop a novel non-invasive approach to transcranial thrombolysis in attempt to advance mid-stroke treatment options. When not in lab nor asleep, Matine enjoys doing just about anything – in the ocean – in Hawaii. His ultimate career goal is to retire the first day after residency and return to Kauai to be a green tea farmer.


Undergraduate Researchers

Emily Gardner

Emily Gardner is an undergraduate in the Bioengineering department at Stanford University. She has been interested in neuroscience from a young age and uses this interest and her passion for engineering in the George Lab. Emily works on cell encapsulation methods to develop glial co-cultures. She hopes to pursue a career in research and development to help develop innovative therapeutics. Outside of the lab, she competes in powerlifting and bakes treats.

Jainith Patel

Jainith is an undergraduate student majoring in Biology at Stanford University. His interest in research began in high school, with his early projects focusing on improving photovoltaic cell efficiency and designing a machine learning approach to skin lesion diagnosis. His biochemistry coursework led him to join the George Lab in Fall of 2019 with the goal of exploring the underlying biochemistry behind stroke and neuroprotective pathways. In particular, he is interested in exploring the effects of cellular proteins in improving the recovery of neurons after ischemic insult. In the future, Jainith aspires to pursue a career as a physician and hopes to continue his research experience during medical school. When not taking classes and working in lab, Jainith enjoys volunteering with the Cardinal Free Clinics, being an active member of the Stanford Premed Asian Pacific American Medical Students Association, and tutoring Biology students. As a sports enthusiast, he enjoys playing recreational basketball, tennis, and ultimate frisbee.

Collaborators