I grew up in Michigan and studied neuroscience at the University of Michigan before moving to New York City to study the cellular and molecular mechanisms of major depressive disorder at Rockefeller University with Dr. Paul Greengard. I now study how early life adversity contributes to adult psychiatric disorders with Dr. Tallie Z. Baram. In my free time, I like to rock climb, sew, and practice archery.
a. Kooiker, C. L., Birnie, M. T., Baram, T. Z. (2021). The Paraventricular Thalamus: A sensor and integrator of emotionally salient early-life experiences. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience.
b. Birnie, M. T., Kooiker, C. L., Short, A. K., Bolton, J. L., Chen, Y., & Baram, T. Z. (2020). Plasticity of the Reward Circuitry After Early-Life Adversity: Mechanisms and Significance. Biological Psychiatry, 87(10), 875–884. Pubmed PMID: 32081365; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7211119
c. Jin, J., Bhatti, D. L., Lee, K.-W., Medrihan, L., Cheng, J., Wei, J., Zhong, P., Yan, Z., Kooiker, C., Song, C., Ahn, J.-H., Obermair, G. J., Lee, A., Gresack, J., Greengard, P., & Kim, Y. (2019). Ahnak scaffolds p11/AnxA2 complex and L-type voltage-gated calcium channel and modulates depressive behavior. Molecular Psychiatry, 25(5), 1035–1049. PubMed PMID: 30760886; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6692256
d. Bolton, J. L., Short, A. K., Othy, S., Shao, M., Kooiker, C. L., Beck, J., Bai, X., Gunn, B. G., Law, S. M., Savage, J. C., Lambert, J. J., Belelli, D., Tremblay, M., Cahalan, M. D., Baram, T. Z. (in review, 2021). Early-life adversity augments excitatory synapses onto CRH -expressing hypothalamic neurons via deficient microglial pruning function. Neuron.
e. Kooiker, C. L., Birnie, M. T., Baram, T. Z. (2020, February). TRAPping memories of early life adversity. Conte Center@UCI 7th Annual Symposium, Irvine, California.
f. Kooiker, C. L., Bolton, J. L., Short, A., Baram, T. Z. (2018, December). The Role of Mer Tyrosine Kinase in Early-life Microglia-mediated Synaptic Changes of Stress-sensitive Hypothalamic Neurons. UC Irvine Immunology Fair, Irvine, California.
g. Kooiker, C.L., Flack, C.G., Talsma, C.E., Soules, M., Zhu, T., & Fan, X. (2011, June). CyclinD mediates Notch-regulated self-renewal. Michigan Research Community Symposium, Ann Arbor, MI.
NIMH F30 NRSA Individual Predoctoral Fellowship
NIDA T32 Training Program in Substance Use and Use Disorders Trainee
Jared M. Roberts Memorial Award