Claudia Alejandra Grillo

Claudia Alejandra Grillo, Ph.D., is a Research Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacology, Physiology & Neuroscience at the University of South Carolina School of Medicine Columbia. Her research focuses on the neural mechanisms of obesity, metabolic disorders, and stress, particularly examining leptin and insulin signaling in the brain. She utilizes advanced methodologies such as in vivo microdialysis and optogenetics to study neuroendocrine regulation of eating behavior and mood.

Education:

• Ph.D., University of Buenos Aires, Argentina
• BS/BA, University of Buenos Aires, Argentina
• Postdoctoral Training, The Rockefeller University, New York, NY

Her research program investigates how metabolic signals such as leptin and insulin influence brain function, particularly in the hippocampus and raphe nuclei. She explores how obesity and insulin resistance contribute to cognitive deficits, depressive-like behaviors, and neuroinflammation. Her work bridges neuroscience, endocrinology, and metabolism, contributing to understanding the brain-body connection in disease states. She has published extensively on topics including hippocampal plasticity, stress neurobiology, and the role of neurotransmitter systems in metabolic regulation.

Her recent publications reveal a strong focus on the impact of metabolic dysregulation on brain structure and function, including insulin resistance in the hippocampus, leptin resistance and mood, and the effects of dietary interventions on anhedonia. She frequently collaborates with Dr. Lawrence Reagan and others, and her work often involves rodent models of diabetes, obesity, and stress.

Scientific Contributions and Recognition:

• Active research program with continuous publication since the 1980s
• Extensive collaborative network in neuroscience and metabolism
• Mentorship of undergraduate and graduate students

Dr. Grillo advises several students and leads a productive research laboratory focused on metabolic neuroscience. She has not received any explicitly mentioned awards in the provided text. Her lab investigates the intersection of metabolism and brain health, with implications for disorders such as obesity, diabetes, depression, and Alzheimer's disease.

Laboratory and Team:

• Laboratory focused on metabolic neuroscience and neuroendocrinology
• Current lab members include Nicholas Maxwell (Graduate Research Student), Brittany Eberl, Andrei Robu, and Daniel Giles (Undergraduate Research Students)