Rachel D. Moloney

Dr. Rachel D. Moloney is a Lecturer and Funded Investigator at the School of Pharmacy, University College Cork (UCC), Ireland. She holds a B.Sc. (Hons) in Biochemistry from UCC (2009), an M.Sc. in Neuropharmacology from the National University of Ireland, Galway (2012), and a Ph.D. in Psychiatry and Anatomy & Neuroscience from UCC (2014). Her postdoctoral research included roles at APC Microbiome Ireland, the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, and the University of Cincinnati. She was awarded the prestigious NARSAD Young Investigator Award (2018) and the Pain Research Medal (2014).

Her research focuses on stress neurobiology, particularly the role of traumatic stress on brain circuitry and empathy-related behaviors in PTSD, anxiety, and depression. She uses advanced tools like chemogenetics and viral vectors to study corticolimbic circuits. Her work also explores the gut microbiome’s bidirectional communication with the brain and spinal circuitry in stress-related illnesses.

Dr. Moloney has secured grants such as the NARSAD Young Investigator Award (€70,000) and the OCNS Translational Research Grant. She contributes to journals like Molecular Psychiatry and Biological Psychiatry as a referee. Her teaching includes modules such as PT1445 and PF6421 in the School of Pharmacy.

• Education:
  • B.Sc. Biochemistry, UCC (2009)
  • M.Sc. Neuropharmacology, NUIG (2012)
  • Ph.D., UCC (2014)
• Research Grants:
  • NARSAD Young Investigator Award (€70,000)
  • OCNS Translational Research Grant

Her lab investigates stress-induced changes in brain circuits and the microbiota-gut-brain axis. Collaborators include Dr. Evelin Cotella (University of Cincinnati) and Prof. James P. Herman. She is affiliated with APC Microbiome Ireland and actively involved in neuroscience societies.