Melissa Petersen

Melissa Petersen, PhD, is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Family Medicine and Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine at the Texas College of Osteopathic Medicine (University of North Texas Health Science Center). Her research focuses on blood-based biomarkers for neurodegenerative diseases, particularly Alzheimer’s and Down Syndrome, with an emphasis on racial and ethnic disparities. She collaborates with the Health and Aging Brain Study-Health Disparities (HABS-HD) cohort, analyzing MRI, PET, and biomarker data across diverse populations.

• Education: BA & MA in Psychology (Texas Tech University), PhD in Clinical Health Psychology (University of North Texas), Postdoctoral Fellowship (University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center), and Pre-Doctoral Internship (Warren Alpert Medical School).

Her research interests span biomarker utility, neurodegenerative disease detection, and cognitive outcomes in aging populations. Recent projects include studies on neurofilament light (NF-L) in Mexican Americans and longitudinal validation of retinal biomarkers. She leads 25+ sponsored projects, including grants on precision medicine and bilingualism’s impact on cognition.

• Key Projects: Precision Medicine for Inflamm (2024–2026), Impact of Ethnicity on Biomarker Utility (2024–2029), Longitudinal Retinal Validation (2023–2027).

Labs/Teams: Collaborates with multi-institutional networks including University of Southern California, University of Rhode Island, and University of California San Francisco.