Catia Martins Teixeira, PhD

Catia Teixeira, PhD is a behavioral neuroscientist studying the molecular and cellular bases of behavior. Dr. Teixeira received her PhD from the Graduate Program in Basic and Applied Biology at the Universidade do Porto, Portugal. As part of the G.A.B.B.A. PhD program, she conducted her research in the laboratory of Dr. Paul Frankland (Sick Kids Hospital, UofT, Canada) where she studied the cellular and molecular mechanisms of memory formation and consolidation. Dr. Teixeira then performed her post-doctoral studies in the laboratory of Dr. Eduardo Soriano where she studied how dysregulation of genes involved in neuronal development affect adult behavior. She continued her post-doctoral training at Columbia University, in Dr. Mark Ansorge’s laboratory, where her research focused on developmental critical periods during which exposure to commonly prescribed/abused drugs affect adult-behavior and on the role of serotonin in memory expression.

Using behavioral testing, molecular biology, optogenetics, and electrophysiology, in rodent models, Dr. Teixeira’s laboratory aims to understand how the environment modulates the developing brain leading to enduring behavioral modifications in the adult.