Mental health disorders are currently on the rise, especially among children and young people, and early life stress is an important contributor. A central question guiding my research is: Why do some individuals develop mental health conditions following early life stress, while others remain resilient? To explore this, I use mouse models to examine how stress impacts the brain across the lifespan. My goal is to identify the molecular mechanisms that drive vulnerability in some individuals and to discover ways to enhance resilience.
Photo by Celia Muto
What drew you to this area of neuroscience?
When I was in high school in Bogotá, Colombia, I visited an abandoned children’s shelter. The sight of children, who were likely 12 years old but looked like 6-year-olds, struck me quite deeply. I found myself wondering about their lives, their early years, and the opportunities they might have missed. This experience delved into the study of psychology.
During my undergraduate studies at the National University of Colombia, I was eager to understand development from a neuroscientific perspective. I was particularly fascinated by how the brain develops and the various factors that can influence this process. This curiosity led me to pursue doctoral studies at McGill University in Canada, where I investigated the roles of specific molecules that orchestrate brain maturation during critical developmental periods, such as prepuberty and adolescence.
For my postdoctoral work at the Friedman Brain Institute at Mount Sinai in New York, I studied the molecular alterations caused by early life stress and their long-lasting effects on the brain throughout a person’s lifespan. My ultimate goal is to develop improved therapeutic strategies to prevent or reverse the molecular ‘scars’ induced by stress, with the broader aim of enhancing resilience against mental health and neurodevelopmental conditions. The urgency of this research cannot be overstated, as mental health challenges impact millions of people worldwide.
What is the first experiment you remember doing?
During my undergraduate studies, I participated in various experimental projects, but it was not until my honors thesis that I had the chance to lead my own experiment. For this, I exposed rat pups to maternal separation to induce early life stress and investigate its behavioral effects in adulthood. I found that while some adult rats exposed to maternal separation exhibited increased signs of depression and anxiety-like behaviors, a subset of the rats behaved similarly to the control group. These results led me to think about the concept of resilience and how we can explore the underlying mechanisms experimentally.
What is an emerging area of science that you are excited about? Where do you see potential for big discoveries in the next decade?
One goal is to find better intervention strategies for individuals with mental health disorders based on their particular challenges. In the clinic, some individuals may respond better to specific treatments and approaches, and currently, it is hard for providers to tell who will respond and who will not.
Identifying biological, physiological, or behavioral predictors that could aid in providing more tailored treatments would be very helpful to families and individuals with mental health disorders. I strongly believe that we as neuroscientists could help.
What are your hobbies outside of the lab—current, past, or future?
There are different activities and hobbies I like to do when I am not in the lab, including biking, going for a hike or trying different types of food. I also love traveling; thus, I try to visit as many places as I can! In the past, I helped design neuroscience-themed handbags to raise fund for philanthropic purposes and promote neuroscience among the public.