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Anila D'Mello

Anila D'Mello

Jon Heighten Scholar in Autism Research (UTSW)
Assistant Professor

Research Interests: Cognitive neuroscience of language and social cognition across development and in autism; Cerebellar contributions to cognition and disorders

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Professional Preparation

PhD - Behavior, Cognition, and Neuroscience
American University - 2017
MA - Psychology
American University - 2014
BA - Psychology
Georgetown University - 2008

Research Areas

Language and cognition are exceptionally complex behaviors, scaffolded by both sensorimotor and cognitive systems, unfolding across short and long timescales, and varying greatly across individuals and development. Our lab studies the neurocognitive basis of language and cognition across typical and atypical neurodevelopment, including in autistic individuals. We are particularly interested in the role of cerebro-cerebellar circuits in language, cognition, and disorders. To do this, we combine tools from cognitive neuroscience, psychiatry, and developmental psychology including neuroimaging, neuromodulation, behavioral experimentation, and clinical interventions. 

Publications

D’Mello, A.M., Frosch, I.R., Li, C., Cardinaux, A., Gabrieli, J.D.E. (2022) Participation of females in autism research: empirical evidence for a “leaky” recruitment-to-research pipeline. Autism Research. https://doi.org/10.1002/aur.2795. - publications
D’Mello, A.M., Bach P., Corlett, P., Rozenkrantz, L.(2022) Editorial: Predictive Mechanisms in Action, Perception, Cognition, and Clinical Disorders. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2022.1005905.  - publications
Olson, H.A. & D’Mello, A.M. (2022) The Social Brain. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Psychology. Oxford University Press. Ed. Oliver Braddick.  - publications
Frosch, I.R., Mittal, V.A., D’Mello, A.M. (2022) Cerebellar contributions to adaptive prediction and Autism Spectrum Disorders. Invited submission to Frontiers in Integrative Neuroscience 16. - publications
Al Dahhan, N.Z., Halverson, K., Peek, C.P., Wilmot, D., D’Mello, A. M., Romeo, R., Meegoda, O., Imhof, A., Wade, K., Sridhar, A., Centanni, T.M., Gabrieli, J.D.E., & Christodoulou, J.A. (2022). Dissociating executive function and ADHD influences on reading ability in children with dyslexia. Cortex.  - publications
Pollack, C., Wilmot, D., Centanni, T., Halverson, K., Frosch, I., D’Mello, A.M., Romeo, R., Capella, J., Imhof, A., Wade, K., Al Dahhan, N., Gabrieli, J.D.E.  & Christodoulou, J.A. (2021) Anxiety, motivation, and competence in math and reading in children with and without learning difficulties. Frontiers in Psychology, 4193. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.704821   - publications
Rozenkrantz, L., D’Mello, A.M., Gabrieli, J.D.E (2021) Enhanced Rationality in Autism Spectrum Disorder. Trends in Cognitive Sciences 25(8):685-696. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2021.05.004 - publications
Rice, L., D’Mello, A.M., Stoodley, C.J. (2021) Differential behavioral and neural effects of regional cerebellar tDCS. Neuroscience 462, 288-302. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.neuroscience.2021.03.008 - publications

Appointments

Assistant Professor
University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center [2022–Present]
Assistant Professor
University of Texas at Dallas [2022–Present]
Postdoctoral Fellow
Massachusetts Institute of Technology [2017–2022]

News Articles

The benefits of special interests in autism
Is a Diagnostic Test to Blame for Why We Know So Little about Autism in Girls?
Embracing neurodiversity to better understand autism