The Illinois-Carle Joint Neural Engineering and Rehabilitation Laboratory (JNERL) is pleased to announce that Prof. Yuan Yang, Ph.D., has received a Certificate of Recognition from the American Heart Association for his service as a scientific expert and member of the 2026 Fellowship Engineering and Technology 2 research peer review committee.
Prof. Yang is an associate professor of bioengineering at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, a faculty member at the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, and an associate professor in Clinical Imaging at Carle Foundation Hospital. He directs JNERL, an interdisciplinary laboratory that brings together engineering, neuroscience, medical imaging, and clinical rehabilitation research through the collaboration between Illinois and Carle Health.
Prof. Yang’s research focuses on understanding how the human sensorimotor system adapts and reorganizes following neurological injury, particularly stroke. His group combines multimodal neuroimaging and electrophysiological methods, including EEG, functional MRI, diffusion MRI, and neuromuscular measurements, with signal processing, computational modeling, and artificial intelligence. The laboratory also develops targeted noninvasive brain stimulation and closed-loop neurotechnology approaches designed to support individualized rehabilitation and improve motor recovery.
In addition to advancing research in neural engineering and neurorehabilitation, Prof. Yang contributes to the broader scientific community through grant review, editorial service, interdisciplinary collaboration, education, and mentorship. His service on the American Heart Association peer review committee helped support the rigorous evaluation of fellowship applications and the development of emerging researchers working at the intersection of engineering, technology, and cardiovascular and cerebrovascular health.
The JNERL team congratulates Prof. Yang on this recognition and thanks him for his continued contributions to scientific research, professional service, and the advancement of precision neurorehabilitation.