Elysa Marco, MD is a board-certified cognitive and behavioral pediatric neurologist, neuroscience researcher, and author. She specializes in the evaluation and treatment of children with sensory processing disorder, autism, and other neurodevelopmental conditions at Cortica in San Rafael, California. Dr. Marco's research has focused on the genetics, brain anatomy, and treatment of children with neurodevelopmental disorders. Over her career, she has authored more than 40 peer-review scientific articles and book chapters. Dr. Marco is an internationally recognized expert in the field of neurodevelopmental disorders and has been honored to speak at autism conferences, sensory symposiums, physician educational events, and parent support meetings.

Born and raised in Miami, Florida, Dr. Marco earned her bachelor of arts degree in psychology from the University of Pennsylvania. She received her medical degree from the University of California, San Francisco. She held appointments as the director of the Sensory Neurodevelopment and Autism Program (SNAP) as well as the associated head of the Developmental Medicine Program. While at the University of California, Dr. Marco led a clinical research program that integrated the work of neurologists, psychologists, neuroimaging experts, radiologists, and video game designers. Her clinic and research continues at Cortica. In addition to her medical career, Dr. Marco is the co-author of "The Lilaguide: Baby-Friendly" series of guidebooks for parents and enjoys parenting her own two children.

List of Peer-Reviewed Publications:

A complete list can be found here.

1: Lazerwitz, M.C., Rowe, M.A., Trimarchi, K.J. et al. Brief Report: Characterization of Sensory Over-Responsivity in a Broad Neurodevelopmental Concern Cohort Using the Sensory Processing Three Dimensions (SP3D) Assessment. J Autism Dev Disord (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10803-022-05747-0

2: Miller LJ, Marco EJ, Chu RC, Camarata S. Editorial: Sensory Processing Across the Lifespan: A 25-Year Initiative to Understand Neurophysiology, Behaviors, and Treatment Effectiveness for Sensory Processing. Front Integr Neurosci. 2021 Apr 9;15:652218. doi: 10.3389/fnint.2021.652218. PMID: 33897385; PMCID: PMC8063042.

3: Jurigova BG, Gerdes MR, Anguera JA, Marco EJ. Sustained benefits of cognitive training in children with inattention, three-year follow-up. PLoS One. 2021 Feb 4;16(2):e0246449. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0246449. PMID: 33539468; PMCID: PMC7861383.

4: Narayan A, Rowe MA, Palacios EM, Wren-Jarvis J, Bourla I, Gerdes M, Brandes- Aitken A, Desai SS, Marco EJ, Mukherjee P. Altered Cerebellar White Matter in Sensory Processing Dysfunction Is Associated With Impaired Multisensory Integration and Attention. Front Psychol. 2021 Feb 3;11:618436. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.618436. PMID: 33613368; PMCID: PMC7888341.

5: Mis EK, Sega AG, Signer RH, Cartwright T, Ji W, Martinez-Agosto JA, Nelson SF, Palmer CGS, Lee H, Mitzelfelt T, Konstantino M; Undiagnosed Diseases Network, Jeffries L, Khokha MK, Marco E, Martin MG, Lakhani SA. Expansion of NEUROD2 phenotypes to include developmental delay without seizures. Am J Med Genet A. 2021 Apr;185(4):1076-1080. doi: 10.1002/ajmg.a.62064. Epub 2021 Jan 13. PMID: 33438828.

6: Connaughton DM, Dai R, Owen DJ, Marquez J, Mann N, Graham-Paquin AL, Nakayama M, Coyaud E, Laurent EMN, St-Germain JR, Blok LS, Vino A, Klämbt V, Deutsch K, Wu CW, Kolvenbach CM, Kause F, Ottlewski I, Schneider R, Kitzler TM, Majmundar AJ, Buerger F, Onuchic-Whitford AC, Youying M, Kolb A, Salmanullah D, Chen E, van der Ven AT, Rao J, Ityel H, Seltzsam S, Rieke JM, Chen J, Vivante A, Hwang DY, Kohl S, Dworschak GC, Hermle T, Alders M, Bartolomaeus T, Bauer SB, Baum MA, Brilstra EH, Challman TD, Zyskind J, Costin CE, Dipple KM, Duijkers FA, Ferguson M, Fitzpatrick DR, Fick R, Glass IA, Hulick PJ, Kline AD, Krey I, Kumar S, Lu W, Marco EJ, Wentzensen IM, Mefford HC, Platzer K, Povolotskaya IS, Savatt JM, Shcherbakova NV, Senguttuvan P, Squire AE, Stein DR, Thiffault I, Voinova VY, Somers MJG, Ferguson MA, Traum AZ, Daouk GH, Daga A, Rodig NM, Terhal PA, van Binsbergen E, Eid LA, Tasic V, Rasouly HM, Lim TY, Ahram DF, Gharavi AG, Reutter HM, Rehm HL, MacArthur DG, Lek M, Laricchia KM, Lifton RP, Xu H, Mane SM, Sanna- Cherchi S, Sharrocks AD, Raught B, Fisher SE, Bouchard M, Khokha MK, Shril S, Hildebrandt F. Mutations of the Transcriptional Corepressor ZMYM2 Cause Syndromic Urinary Tract Malformations. Am J Hum Genet. 2020 Oct 1;107(4):727-742. doi: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2020.08.013. Epub 2020 Sep 4. PMID: 32891193; PMCID: PMC7536580.

7: Li J, Maghera J, Lamothe SM, Marco EJ, Kurata HT. Heteromeric Assembly of Truncated Neuronal Kv7 Channels: Implications for Neurologic Disease and Pharmacotherapy. Mol Pharmacol. 2020 Sep;98(3):192-202. doi: 10.1124/mol.120.119644. Epub 2020 Jun 24. PMID: 32580997.

8: Granadillo JL, P A Stegmann A, Guo H, Xia K, Angle B, Bontempo K, Ranells JD, Newkirk P, Costin C, Viront J, Stumpel CT, Sinnema M, Panis B, Pfundt R, Krapels IPC, Klaassens M, Nicolai J, Li J, Jiang Y, Marco E, Canton A, Latronico AC, Montenegro L, Leheup B, Bonnet C, M Amudhavalli S, Lawson CE, McWalter K, Telegrafi A, Pearson R, Kvarnung M, Wang X, Bi W, Rosenfeld JA, Shinawi M. Pathogenic variants in TNRC6B cause a genetic disorder

9: Fischer-Zirnsak B, Segebrecht L, Schubach M, Charles P, Alderman E, Brown K, Cadieux-Dion M, Cartwright T, Chen Y, Costin C, Fehr S, Fitzgerald KM, Fleming E, Foss K, Ha T, Hildebrand G, Horn D, Liu S, Marco EJ, McDonald M, McWalter K, Race S, Rush ET, Si Y, Saunders C, Slavotinek A, Stockler-Ipsiroglu S, Telegrafi A, Thiffault I, Torti E, Tsai AC, Wang X, Zafar M, Keren B, Kornak U, Boerkoel CF, Mirzaa G, Ehmke N. Haploinsufficiency of the Notch Ligand DLL1 Causes Variable Neurodevelopmental Disorders. Am J Hum Genet. 2019 Sep 5;105(3):631-639. doi: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2019.07.002. Epub 2019 Jul 25. PMID: 31353024; PMCID: PMC6731356.

10: Miller LJ, Marco EJ, Chu RC, Camarata S. Editorial: Sensory Processing Across the Lifespan: A 25-Year Initiative to Understand Neurophysiology, Behaviors, and Treatment Effectiveness for Sensory Processing. Front Integr Neurosci. 2021 Apr 9;15:652218. doi: 10.3389/fnint.2021.652218. PMID: 33897385; PMCID: PMC8063042.

11: Jurigova BG, Gerdes MR, Anguera JA, Marco EJ. Sustained benefits of cognitive training in children with inattention, three-year follow-up. PLoS One. 2021 Feb 4;16(2):e0246449. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0246449. PMID: 33539468; PMCID: PMC7861383.

12: Narayan A, Rowe MA, Palacios EM, Wren-Jarvis J, Bourla I, Gerdes M, Brandes- Aitken A, Desai SS, Marco EJ, Mukherjee P. Altered Cerebellar White Matter in Sensory Processing Dysfunction Is Associated With Impaired Multisensory Integration and Attention. Front Psychol. 2021 Feb 3;11:618436. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.618436. PMID: 33613368; PMCID: PMC7888341.

13: Mis EK, Sega AG, Signer RH, Cartwright T, Ji W, Martinez-Agosto JA, Nelson SF, Palmer CGS, Lee H, Mitzelfelt T, Konstantino M; Undiagnosed Diseases Network, Jeffries L, Khokha MK, Marco E, Martin MG, Lakhani SA. Expansion of NEUROD2 phenotypes to include developmental delay without seizures. Am J Med Genet A. 2021 Apr;185(4):1076-1080. doi: 10.1002/ajmg.a.62064. Epub 2021 Jan 13. PMID: 33438828.

14: Connaughton DM, Dai R, Owen DJ, Marquez J, Mann N, Graham-Paquin AL, Nakayama M, Coyaud E, Laurent EMN, St-Germain JR, Blok LS, Vino A, Klämbt V, Deutsch K, Wu CW, Kolvenbach CM, Kause F, Ottlewski I, Schneider R, Kitzler TM, Majmundar AJ, Buerger F, Onuchic-Whitford AC, Youying M, Kolb A, Salmanullah D, Chen E, van der Ven AT, Rao J, Ityel H, Seltzsam S, Rieke JM, Chen J, Vivante A, Hwang DY, Kohl S, Dworschak GC, Hermle T, Alders M, Bartolomaeus T, Bauer SB, Baum MA, Brilstra EH, Challman TD, Zyskind J, Costin CE, Dipple KM, Duijkers FA, Ferguson M, Fitzpatrick DR, Fick R, Glass IA, Hulick PJ, Kline AD, Krey I, Kumar S, Lu W, Marco EJ, Wentzensen IM, Mefford HC, Platzer K, Povolotskaya IS, Savatt JM, Shcherbakova NV, Senguttuvan P, Squire AE, Stein DR, Thiffault I, Voinova VY, Somers MJG, Ferguson MA, Traum AZ, Daouk GH, Daga A, Rodig NM, Terhal PA, van Binsbergen E, Eid LA, Tasic V, Rasouly HM, Lim TY, Ahram DF, Gharavi AG, Reutter HM, Rehm HL, MacArthur DG, Lek M, Laricchia KM, Lifton RP, Xu H, Mane SM, Sanna- Cherchi S, Sharrocks AD, Raught B, Fisher SE, Bouchard M, Khokha MK, Shril S, Hildebrandt F. Mutations of the Transcriptional Corepressor ZMYM2 Cause Syndromic Urinary Tract Malformations. Am J Hum Genet. 2020 Oct 1;107(4):727-742. doi: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2020.08.013. Epub 2020 Sep 4. PMID: 32891193; PMCID: PMC7536580.

15: Li J, Maghera J, Lamothe SM, Marco EJ, Kurata HT. Heteromeric Assembly of Truncated Neuronal Kv7 Channels: Implications for Neurologic Disease and Pharmacotherapy. Mol Pharmacol. 2020 Sep;98(3):192-202. doi: 10.1124/mol.120.119644. Epub 2020 Jun 24. PMID: 32580997.

16: Granadillo JL, P A Stegmann A, Guo H, Xia K, Angle B, Bontempo K, Ranells JD, Newkirk P, Costin C, Viront J, Stumpel CT, Sinnema M, Panis B, Pfundt R, Krapels IPC, Klaassens M, Nicolai J, Li J, Jiang Y, Marco E, Canton A, Latronico AC, Montenegro L, Leheup B, Bonnet C, M Amudhavalli S, Lawson CE, McWalter K, Telegrafi A, Pearson R, Kvarnung M, Wang X, Bi W, Rosenfeld JA, Shinawi M. Pathogenic variants in TNRC6B cause a genetic disorder

17: Fischer-Zirnsak B, Segebrecht L, Schubach M, Charles P, Alderman E, Brown K, Cadieux-Dion M, Cartwright T, Chen Y, Costin C, Fehr S, Fitzgerald KM, Fleming E, Foss K, Ha T, Hildebrand G, Horn D, Liu S, Marco EJ, McDonald M, McWalter K, Race S, Rush ET, Si Y, Saunders C, Slavotinek A, Stockler-Ipsiroglu S, Telegrafi A, Thiffault I, Torti E, Tsai AC, Wang X, Zafar M, Keren B, Kornak U, Boerkoel CF, Mirzaa G, Ehmke N. Haploinsufficiency of the Notch Ligand DLL1 Causes Variable Neurodevelopmental Disorders. Am J Hum Genet. 2019 Sep 5;105(3):631-639. doi: 10.1016/j.ajhg.2019.07.002. Epub 2019 Jul 25. PMID: 31353024; PMCID: PMC6731356.

18: Yerys BE, Bertollo JR, Kenworthy L, Dawson G, Marco EJ, Schultz RT, Sikich L. Brief Report: Pilot Study of a Novel Interactive Digital Treatment to Improve Cognitive Control in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder and Co-occurring ADHD Symptoms. J Autism Dev Disord. 2019 Apr;49(4):1727-1737. doi: 10.1007/s10803-018-3856-7. PMID: 30569407.

19: Payabvash S, Palacios EM, Owen JP, Wang MB, Tavassoli T, Gerdes M, Brandes- Aitken A, Mukherjee P, Marco EJ. White Matter Connectome Correlates of Auditory Over-Responsivity: Edge Density Imaging and Machine-Learning Classifiers. Front Integr Neurosci. 2019 Mar 29;13:10. doi: 10.3389/fnint.2019.00010. PMID: 30983979; PMCID: PMC6450221.

20: Nabais Sá MJ, Jensik PJ, McGee SR, Parker MJ, Lahiri N, McNeil EP, Kroes HY, Hagerman RJ, Harrison RE, Montgomery T, Splitt M, Palmer EE, Sachdev RK, Mefford HC, Scott AA, Martinez-Agosto JA, Lorenz R, Orenstein N, Berg JN, Amiel J, Heron D, Keren B, Cobben JM, Menke LA, Marco EJ, Graham JM Jr, Pierson TM, Karimiani EG, Maroofian R, Manzini MC, Cauley ES, Colombo R, Odent S, Dubourg C, Phornphutkul C, de Brouwer APM, de Vries BBA, Vulto-vanSilfhout AT. De novo and biallelic DEAF1 variants cause a phenotypic spectrum. Genet Med. 2019 Sep;21(9):2059-2069. doi: 10.1038/s41436-019-0473-6. Epub 2019 Mar 29. PMID: 30923367.

21: Payabvash S, Palacios EM, Owen JP, Wang MB, Tavassoli T, Gerdes M, Brandes- Aitken A, Cuneo D, Marco EJ, Mukherjee P. White Matter Connectome Edge Density in Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders: Potential Imaging Biomarkers Using Machine-Learning Models. Brain Connect. 2019 Mar;9(2):209-220. doi: 10.1089/brain.2018.0658. PMID: 30661372; PMCID: PMC6444925.

22: Tavassoli T, Brandes-Aitken A, Chu R, Porter L, Schoen S, Miller LJ, Gerdes MR, Owen J, Mukherjee P, Marco EJ. Sensory over-responsivity: parent report, direct assessment measures, and neural architecture. Mol Autism. 2019 Feb 4;10:4. doi: 10.1186/s13229-019-0255-7. PMID: 30740199; PMCID: PMC6360663.

23: Brandes-Aitken A, Anguera JA, Chang YS, Demopoulos C, Owen JP, Gazzaley A, Mukherjee P, Marco EJ. White Matter Microstructure Associations of Cognitive and Visuomotor Control in Children: A Sensory Processing Perspective. Front Integr Neurosci. 2019 Jan 14;12:65. doi: 10.3389/fnint.2018.00065. PMID: 30692921; PMCID: PMC6339953.