Kelsea Gildawie

Kelsea Gildawie is a behavioral neuroscientist who studies the sex-dependent effects of early life adversity on brain development. She received her BS from Simmons University with a major in neuroscience and behavior and a minor in biostatistics. She went on to receive her PhD in psychology (specializing in behavioral neuroscience) from Northeastern University, where she worked in the Brenhouse Lab to uncover the impact of early life adversity on neurostructural and neuroimmune development. As an IRACDA Postdoctoral Scholar at Tufts University in the Byrnes-Vassoler Lab, she investigated the effects of prenatal opioid exposure on the neural underpinnings of reward-motivated behavior.

Professor Gildawie is passionate about equity in STEM and enjoys mentoring students in and out of the classroom. She loves talking about the brain, playing video games, cuddling with her two wonderful cats, and adding to her extensive mug collection (stop by her office to take a look!) 

Education

• PhD, Psychology (Behavioral Neuroscience), from Northeastern University (2021)
• MS, Psychology (Behavioral Neuroscience), from Northeastern University (2018)
• BS, Neuroscience and Behavior (Minor in Biostatistics), from Simmons University (2016)

Courses

• PSYC 201 Biological Psychology (with lab)

Research/Special Projects

Adversity comes in myriad forms and has different outcomes depending on the stage of development in which it occurs. Research in the Gildawie Lab therefore explores the developmental and long-term effects of early life adversity on the brain and subsequent behavior. Clinical work has made major strides in assessing the effects of early life adversity in human populations, specifically identifying differing outcomes in girls and boys exposed to adverse experiences. In turn, research in humans informs preclinical research using animal models, which can provide additional insight into sex-dependent mechanisms driving adversity-induced dysfunction. The Gildawie Lab focuses on the following overarching goals: 1) identifying the role of adversity in shaping behavior in males and females throughout the lifespan, 2) determining how developmental changes in the brain drive these sex-dependent behavioral outcomes, and 3) conducting clinically-informed research that has translational applications to the human experience. This multifaceted approach lends itself to student involvement, encouraging ideas and unique perspectives from undergraduate researchers to drive research forward while preparing them for their future careers. 

Publications/Presentations

Peer-reviewed Publications

• For a full list of my publications, please see Google Scholar

^ indicates senior authorship
* indicates co-first authorship
^# indicates undergraduate research assistant supervised by Prof Gildawie
^@ indicates graduate research assistant supervised/trained by Prof Gildawie

Gildawie, K. R., Budge, K. E., Vassoler, F. M., Yen, E., Byrnes, E. M. (2025). Differential effects of prenatal buprenorphine and methadone on postnatal growth and gene expression in the nucleus accumbens. Developmental Psychobiology, 67(1), e70015. DOI: 10.1002/dev.70015. PMID: 39648276

^@Fanikos, M., Kohn, S. A., Stamato, R., Brenhouse, H. C., ^Gildawie, K. R. (2024). Impacts of age and environment on postnatal microglial activity: consequences for cognitive function following early life adversity. PLoS ONE, 19(6). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0306022. PMID: 38917075

Vassoler, F. M., Budge, K. E., Isgate, S. B., Gildawie, K. R., Byrnes, E. M. (2024). Neuroplasticity-related genes correlate with individual differences in distinct phases of oxycodone self-administration in male rats. Neuropharmacology, 109972. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2024.109972. PMID: 38710443

Gildawie, K. R., Wang, K., Budge, K. E., Byrnes, E. M. (2024). Sex-dependent effects of maternal separation on effort-based responding for palatable food are associated with c-Fos expression in the nucleus accumbens. Neuroscience, 537, 174-188. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2023.11.030 PMID: 38036058

Granata, L., Gildawie, K. R., Ismail, N., Brenhouse, H. C., Kopec, A. M. (2022). Immune signaling as a node of interaction between systems that sex-specifically develop during puberty and adolescence. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, 57, 101143. DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2022.101143 PMID: 35933922

Gildawie, K. R., ^#Ryll, L., ^#Hexter., J. C., Peterzell, S., Valentine, A. A., Brenhouse, H. (2021). A two-hit adversity model in developing rats reveals sex-specific impacts on prefrontal cortex structure and behavior. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, 48, 100924. DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2021. 100924 PMID: 33515957

*Gildawie, K. R., *^@Orso, R., Peterzell, S., Thompson, V., Brenhouse, H. (2020). Sex differences in prefrontal cortex microglia morphology: Impact of a two-hit model of adversity throughout development. Neuroscience Letters, 135381. DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2020.135381 PMID: 32927000

^#Soares, A. R., Gildawie, K. R., Honeycutt, J. A., Brenhouse, H. (2020). Region-specific effects of maternal separation on oxidative stress accumulation in parvalbumin neurons of male and female rats. Behavioural Brain Research, 112658. DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2020.112658 PMID: 32339550

Gildawie, K. R., Honeycutt, J. A., Brenhouse, H. (2020). Region-specific effects of maternal separation on perineuronal net formation around parvalbumin-expressing interneurons in male and female rats. Neuroscience, 428, 23-37. DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2019.12.010 PMID: 31887358

Carey, A. N., Pintea, G. I., Van Leuven, S., Gildawie, K. R., Squicimara, L., Fine, E., Rovnak, A., Harrington, M. (2019). Red Raspberry (Rubus ideaus) Supplementation Mitigates the Effects of a High Fat Diet on Brain and Behavior in Mice. Nutritional Neuroscience, 1-11. DOI: 10.1080/1028415X.2019.1641284. PMID: 31328696

Gildawie, K. R., Galli, R. L., Shukitt-Hale, B., Carey, A. N. (2018). Protective Effects of Foods Containing Flavonoids on Age-Related Cognitive Decline. Current Nutrition Reports, 1-10. DOI: 10.1007/s13668-018-0227-0. PMID: 29892789

Ganguly, P., Thompson, V., Gildawie, K., Brenhouse, H. (2018). Adolescent food restriction in rats alters prefrontal cortex microglia in an experience-dependent manner. Stress, 1-7. DOI: 10.1080/10253890.2017.1423054. PMID: 29307257

Carey, A. N., Gildawie, K. R., Rovnak, A., Thangthaeng, N., Fisher, D. R., Shukitt-Hale, B. (2017). Blueberry supplementation attenuates microglia activation and increases neuroplasticity in mice consuming a high-fat diet. Nutritional Neuroscience, 22(4), 253-263. DOI:10.1080/1028415X.2017.1376472. PMID: 28931353

Feldman, G., Lavallee, J., Gildawie, K., Greeson, J. M. (2016). Dispositional Mindfulness Uncouples Physiological and Emotional Reactivity to a Laboratory Stressor and Emotional Reactivity to Executive Functioning Lapses in Daily Life. Mindfulness, 7(2), 527-541. DOI:10.1007/s12671-015-0487-3. PMID: 27087863