Alexandre Carter, MD, PhD

Alexandre Carter, MD, PhD, belongs to the next generation of neuroscientists trained to uncover how the adult brain maintains its ability to change and grow throughout life. This knowledge is essential in promoting recovery from stroke, the leading cause of long-term disability. Carter, an assistant professor in neurology at Washington University in Saint Louis, uses cutting-edge techniques such as resting-state functional connectivity MRI and transcranial magnetic stimulation to study how brain networks respond to injury. Brain plasticity has been the recurrent theme in Carter’s career: at Brandeis University, where he was among the first graduates with a degree in neuroscience; at the Robert Wood Johnson Pharmaceutical Research Institute, where he worked on the development of novel anti-anxiety medications; and at Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he obtained his PhD for work on the role of neurotrophins in synapse formation. After graduating from Harvard Medical School, Carter completed his neurology residency at Washington University, where he is now an assistant professor and a member of the university’s neuroimaging research community. His current research focuses on helping to improve approaches to neuro-rehabilitation. He is active in promoting stroke awareness and minority health in the wider Saint Louis community.