Curriculum Vitae
Academic Appointments
08/2024 Assistant Professor of Neurobiology (in Psychiatry), Columbia University Medical Center
03/2024 Research Scientist 5, New York State Psychiatric Institute
Education
2018 PhD in Biomedical Sciences, Neuroscience specialization, New York University.
2013 MSc in Brain and Cognitive Sciences, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands
2008 BSc in Psychobiology, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands
2007 BSc in Physics and Astrophysics with Honors, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands
Scientific Training
Postdoctoral Scientist ( 2018-present)
Columbia University/New York State Psychiatric Institute
Department of Psychiatry, Division of Translational Epidemiology
Advisors: Dr. Myrna M. Weissman and Dr. Ardesheer Talati
Doctoral Student (2011-2018)
Center for Neural Science, New York University.
Advisor: Dr. André Fenton
Master’s Student Research Internship (2009-2010)
Department of Psychology, New York University.
Advisor Dr. Elizabeth Phelps
Master’s Student Research Internship (2009)
Psychiatry Department, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Advisors: Dr. Damiaan Denys and Dr. Martijn Figee
Research Associate, MRI scanner operator (2009)
Department of Psychology, University of Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Advisor: Dr. H. Steven Scholte
Honors and Awards
2023 James Kirk Bernard Foundation Award for Excellence in the Biological Exploration of Suicide
2023 American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Early Career Research Travel Award
2023 International Society for Developmental Psychobiology Travel Award
2023 Most Collaborative Prize at Columbia Psychiatry’s 3rd Annual Science Celebration
2022 American College for Neuropsychopharmacology Travel Award
2022 Glassman Award for Distinguished Scientific Contribution by a Fellow, Columbia University
2022 NIMH K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award
2022 Ann Kelley Memorial Travel Fellow, Winter Conference on Brain Research
2022 Society of Biological Psychiatry Travel Award
2021 AFSP Young Investigator Grant
2020 Finalist for Paul Janssen Fellowship in Translational Neuroscience Research
2017 Cosyne 2017 New Attendees Travel Award
2017 Sackler Institute of Biomedical Sciences Travel Award
2017 NYU Neuroscience Institute Travel Award
2017-2018 Graduate School for Arts and Sciences PhD Writers Room in the Dean’s office
2016 Sackler Institute of Biomedical Sciences Travel Award
2015 Dean’s Student Travel Grant Program, NYU
2009 Huygens Talent Scholarship Programme (Netherlands), $20,000 for research at New York University
Funding
03/2022 – 02/2027
Title: Hippocampal and Genetic Mechanisms Underlying Development of Depression in Children at High Family Risk
R00MH129611 NIMH K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award
Role: PI
Summary: The offspring of parents with major depression have a very high risk of developing mood disorders and other psychopathology themselves. The neurobiological and genetic mechanisms that lead to their vulnerability or resilience remain unclear. Leveraging a unique translational approach with hypotheses generated from rodent studies applied to highly characterized clinical studies and then extended to large diverse population samples, this project will investigate hippocampal, genetic and childhood environmental factors that predict onset of depression in children at high risk for mood disorders.
04/2021 – 06/2023
Title: Frontal‐limbic abnormalities and early life stress in susceptibility and resilience to suicide
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention Young Investigator Grant YIG-R-001-19
Role: PI
Summary: The goal of this project is to identify neurobiological and environmental risk factors (and their interplay) that can help determine which at-risk offspring goes on to develop suicidal attempts and ideation (susceptibility) versus who does not (resilience). Previous work using both animal and human post-mortem studies from our collaborators shows a key role for the hippocampus, an important region of the frontal-limbic neural circuit, in susceptibility and resilience to depression and suicide after early life stress. The broad aims of this study are to (1) identify frontal-limbic markers of susceptibility and resilience in individuals at high family risk for suicide; (2) identify early life adversity markers that predispose to subsequent suicide attempts and ideations and whether these are mediated by the frontal-limbic circuitry.