Nidhi Girish, B.S.

Research Interests

Nidhi Girish joined Dr. Leggio’s Clinical Psychoneuroendocrinology and Neuropsychopharmacology (CPN) Lab in March 2026. She earned a Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience from the University of Pittsburgh in December 2025. Throughout her undergraduate studies, she held various clinical roles, including volunteering as an interpreter in free clinics around Pittsburgh and as a Crisis Counselor with the Crisis Text Line, while also working in emergency room and pediatric care settings.

As a Peer Health Educator on campus, Nidhi worked with the Student Health Center at the University of Pittsburgh, conducting wellness concierge appointments with undergraduates and promoting the importance of physical health education and mental health destigmatization. Under Dr. Zachary Freyberg and Dr. Samuel Mabry in the Department of Neuroscience, she investigated how dopamine dynamics affect behavior, with a focus on applying this knowledge to disorders such as ADHD. Using Drosophila as an animal model, she conducted a project using preference assays to determine the extent of calcium’s role in amphetamine-induced dopamine efflux.

Under the mentorship of Dr. Leggio, Nidhi will contribute to translational research in alcohol and substance use disorders by focusing on the gut-brain axis and neuroendocrine pathways, with the ultimate goal of improving patient outcomes.