Grace Shearrer

Grace Shearrer is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences (Human Nutrition and Food) at the University of Wyoming’s College of Agriculture, Life Sciences and Natural Resources. Since 2021 she has led an active research program examining the neuro-behavioral mechanisms that drive eating behavior and weight regulation in adolescents and pregnant adults.

Education

• Ph.D. Nutritional Science, University of Texas at Austin, 2016
• B.S.F.C. Family and Consumer Sciences (Human Nutrition & Food Pre-Medicine) & B.S. Human Physiology, University of Wyoming, 2012

Research Interests

Dr. Shearrer’s work centers on how non-physiological (hedonic) brain systems interact with homeostatic energy-balance pathways to promote obesity, especially during periods of rapid developmental change. Key themes include:

• Impact of sugar-sweetened beverage intake on dopaminergic reward circuits, endocrine satiety signals, and subsequent weight gain in adolescents.
• Pubertal acceleration of reward-related neural responses and the mediating role of insulin resistance.
• Eye-tracking and fMRI methodologies to model puberty-linked increases in reward-driven eating.
• Pregnancy and postpartum periods as critical windows for insulin resistance and dietary behavior modification.

Publication Trends

Across more than 40 peer-reviewed articles (2013–2025), her scholarship consistently integrates neuroimaging (fMRI, connectome analyses), behavioral (eye-tracking, feeding paradigms), and metabolic biomarkers to dissect risk pathways for obesity. Recent work extends these lines into maternal-child dyads, examining how parental feeding practices, home food environments, and early-life exposures program later diet quality and adiposity.

Scientific Recognition

While no formal awards are listed, her abstracts have received accolades at the national Obesity Society and the international Society for the Study of Ingestive Behavior meetings.

Grants, Mentoring & Teams

Dr. Shearrer directs the M2AENAD research lab (https://www.m2aenad.app/), a multidisciplinary team that includes graduate students and post-doctoral researchers applying neuroimaging and behavioral assays to nutrition problems. She previously co-directed the UNC fMRI Analysis Workshop and has served as PI or Co-I on federal and foundation grants supporting adolescent neuro-nutrition research. Formal student advisees are not enumerated in the provided text.