He received an M.D. from the University of Mumbai, India, in 1991 and a Ph.D. in biology from the California Institute of Technology in 1997. Shah is a neuroscientist who is using his Pioneer Award to develop genetic tools to understand how the brain controls an organism’s ability to form long-lasting social attachments. He seeks to provide new insight into the regulation of social ties and the profound inability to form interpersonal bonds in disorders like autism.