The Rutgers Brain Health Institute has recently launched the Women’s Brain Health Initiative, a new program dedicated to advancing targeted research and public education for women’s brain health. Ioana Carcea, associate professor in the department of pharmacology, physiology, and neuroscience at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, has been selected to lead the program.
Through this new initiative, researchers at Rutgers aim to address the widespread gaps in the scientific understanding of women’s brain function. Despite representing half of the global population and experiencing longer average lifespans than men, women bear a disproportionate burden of neurological and mental health conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease, depression, migraines, anxiety disorders, post-traumatic stress disorders, eating disorders, and chronic pain conditions. On the other hand, women also demonstrate greater resilience against certain neurological conditions, such as stroke, traumatic brain injury, and Parkinson’s disease; thus, uncovering the biological foundations of women’s unique vulnerabilities and resilience will advance brain health research for all people.
Researchers at the Women’s Brain Health Initiative will conduct basic cellular and animal research alongside clinical trails of human patients. They will also work to translate those research findings into actionable resources for women and their families. Additionally, the Rutgers team will work to advance education on women’s brain health and drive public awareness of how unique female biological transitions impact lifelong brain function.
“Women’s physiology poses unique challenges to brain function and behavior. Across puberty, pregnancy and menopause, the female brain undergoes extraordinary biological transitions that shape vulnerability and resilience to mental and neurological disorders,” said Dr. Carcea. “Now we have the tools, the knowledge and the will to understand how the female brain navigates multiple profound transitions across the lifespan. I am excited for the WBHI to be at the forefront of this emerging area of research.”
In her lab, Dr. Carcea explores the intersections of social behavior, physiology, and health, with a focus on how biological states shape maternal and social behaviors and how life experiences alter brain function and long-term health. She holds a medical degree from Grigore T. Popa University of Medicine and Pharmacy in Romania and a Ph.D. in neuroscience from Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York.