Research Staff Spotlight: Dieter Hertling

For Dieter Hertling, the complexity of his work is what makes it appealing. “The work is very fun because it’s challenging,” Dieter says. “Every day, there’s something new to figure out.”

For just over a year, Dieter has worked with Pat Levitt, PhD, CHLA’s Executive Vice President, Chief Scientific Officer and Director of The Saban Research Institute, first as a Research Assistant and now as a Research Specialist. Dieter investigates the interactions between two areas of the brain – the cortex and the amygdala. “The cortex is involved in high emotional regulation and overall higher thinking, and the amygdala is involved in memories and fear,” Dieter explains.

Specifically, he analyzes all neurons that project from a region in the cortex called the medial prefrontal cortex, to the amygdala at different ages to observe how development in these neurons progresses over time.

Dieter was drawn to exploring complex systems from an early age. “Ever since I was a kid, when things are taken apart, I’ve always been interested in figuring out how to put them back together,” he explains. As he grew older, Dieter learned about neurological disorders.

“I wanted to understand how things can go so wrong for people who are otherwise healthy,” he says. This sparked his passion for neuroscience. While studying at University of California, San Diego, Dieter learned about a fellow alumnus, Dr. Levitt, whom he would work for years later at CHLA. “The work itself is meaningful and important, but there are also people in the lab here who I really connect with,” he says.

Outside of work, Dieter enjoys snowboarding and fishing in the Eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains. He also has a passion for aviation. “I’ve had my pilot’s license for about 3 years now, and it’s been so much fun and so life changing.”