
Malu Mandelli, PhD
Maria Luisa Mandelli, PhD, is an Associate Professor of Neurology at the UCSF Edward and Pearl Fein Memory and Aging Center, where she leads the imaging program of the language team (ALBA Lab).
Her research focuses on elucidating the neural basis of language and cognition through advanced multimodal MRI techniques. Dr. Mandelli develops and applies state-of-the-art neuroimaging methodologies—including diffusion tractography, structural and functional MRI, graph theory, and machine learning—to study both neurodegenerative diseases such as frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, and neurodevelopmental conditions such as dyslexia and ADHD.
Dr. Mandelli earned her PhD in biomedical engineering from the Politecnico di Milano in Italy, where she collaborated with the Neurological Institute C. Besta. She joined UCSF in 2010 and has since led innovative imaging efforts to understand how the brain’s structure and function shape language and cognition over time.
Over the past two decades, she has developed and implemented cutting-edge diffusion and functional MRI protocols that have advanced clinical research and led to influential publications. Her work on automated algorithms for white matter tractography and functional connectivity analysis has provided powerful tools for translational neuroscience, contributing to clinically meaningful discoveries.
Dr. Mandelli’s research integrates technological innovation with clinical relevance, bridging engineering and neuroscience to advance understanding and improve care for individuals affected by disorders of language and cognition.
