Catherine S. Woolley facts for kids

Catherine S. Woolley (born July 30, 1965) is an American scientist who studies the brain. She is a neuroendocrinologist, which means she looks at how hormones affect the brain and behavior. Dr. Woolley works at Northwestern University.

She is a top expert in how the adult brain can change and adapt. Her work helps us understand how hormones like estrogen affect brain cells. This research is important for understanding conditions like epilepsy, anxiety, and depression. It also helps in developing new medicines and improving women's health.

Early Life and Education

Catherine S. Woolley was born on July 30, 1965, in Nelsonville, Ohio. She went to Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. There, she earned a degree in zoology. She even won an award for her excellent research paper as an undergraduate student.

Her Career Journey

Dr. Woolley continued her studies at Rockefeller University. She earned her Ph.D. in 1993, working with a famous scientist named Bruce McEwen. After that, she did more research at the University of Washington. She worked in the Department of Neurological Surgery.

In 1998, she became a professor at Northwestern University in Evanston. She now holds a special position called the William Deering Chair in Biological Sciences. Dr. Woolley also helped create Northwestern University's program for students studying neuroscience. In 2018, she received an award for being an excellent teacher.

She was also chosen to be on the Council of the Society for Neuroscience. This is a big group for brain scientists. She is also a senior editor for The Journal of Neuroscience, a major science magazine.

Key Discoveries in Brain Science

Dr. Woolley's research focuses on how hormones affect the brain. She looks at how brain cells change and connect with each other.

Early Research at Rockefeller University

At Rockefeller University, Dr. Woolley worked with Bruce McEwen. They studied how stress affects the brain. She also looked at how certain medicines changed brain chemicals.

One of her most important early studies was in 1990. She used a special method to look at brain cells. This method was first used by Camillo Golgi a long time ago. Her study showed that estradiol, a type of estrogen, changed brain cells in rats. It increased the number of connections between cells in a part of the brain called the hippocampus.

This was a big discovery! At the time, many scientists thought the adult brain couldn't change much. Dr. Woolley's work showed that the brain is much more flexible than people thought. This idea is called synaptic plasticity.

Work at the University of Washington

From 1993 to 1998, Dr. Woolley worked at the University of Washington. She studied how hormones affect brain activity. She looked at how estrogen influenced a brain chemical called GABA in the hippocampus.

In 2000, she received an award for her important work. The award recognized her discoveries about how hormones activate brain cells.

Research at Northwestern University

As a professor at Northwestern, Dr. Woolley continues her research. She studies how estrogens affect the brains of male and female animals differently. She also looks at how other brain chemicals influence brain development and function.

In 2012, her team published research showing that estrogens had different effects in male and female rat brains. This means that hormones can affect brains differently depending on whether they are male or female.

Awards and Recognition

Dr. Woolley has received many awards for her important work:

• 1998: Alfred P. Sloan Foundation Fellowship
• 2000: Cortical Explorer Award
• 2002–2007: W. M. Keck Foundation Distinguished Young Scholar in Medical Research Award
• 2007: C.J. Herrick Award
• 2007–2009: Pioneer Award, Women's Health Research Institute
• 2013: William Deering Chair in Biological Sciences
• 2016: Transformative Research Award, National Institutes of Health
• 2018: Charles Deering McCormick Professor of Teaching Excellence
• 2019: Gill Center Transformative Research Award
• 2019: Elected Member of the National Academy of Medicine