Stephanie Correa, PhD
Assistant Professor, Integrative Biology and Physiology, UCLA
Financial Disclosure: None
Members of the Correa Lab are interested in understanding how basic homeostatic functions are modulated by sex variables. Our research focuses on the effects of estrogens on thermoregulation and energy balance in mice, with a goal to understand the hot flashes and weight gain that people can experience during the menopausal transition. Using genetically engineered mouse models, virally mediated manipulations of neuronal populations, and transcriptional profiling, we have identified distinct estrogen-sensitive neuron populations in the hypothalamus that control physical activity, bone mass, heat production, or torpor. Our work suggests that estrogens may modulate distinct and specialized neural circuits to regulate energy balance in sex-dependent ways.