Christie D. Fowler, PhD
Professor, Department of Neurobiology and Behavior
ORCID | Download Dr. Christie Fowler’s Curriculum Vitae [pdf]
Education:
1998 B.A., Neuroscience, Baldwin-Wallace College
2004 Ph.D., Neuroscience, Laboratory of Dr. Zuoxin Wang, Florida State University
Postdoctoral Training:
2004-2005, Laboratory of Dr. Bruce Trapp, Lerner Research Institute, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Cleveland, OH
2008-2014, Laboratory of Dr. Paul J. Kenny, Molecular Therapeutics, The Scripps Research Institute, Jupiter, FL
Background
The devastating health effects of drug addiction have reverberated worldwide. Which brain mechanisms cause people to become dependent on drugs of abuse? How can we help those who desire to quit? These are the questions that Dr. Christie D. Fowler addresses as Professor and Chancellor’s Fellow in the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior at the University of California Irvine (UCI). Dr. Fowler earned her PhD at Florida State University and conducted postdoctoral training at the Scripps Research Institute, during which time she began to focus on the pharmacotherapeutic development of small molecules. Her lab’s current research aims to elucidate the function of circuits, genetic and epigenetic factors, and extracellular signaling mechanisms underlying dysregulated drug use, including tobacco/nicotine, opioids, cocaine, and cannabis/THC. These efforts have the overall goal of identifying novel targets to develop more efficacious therapeutics to combat drug addiction. Dr. Fowler has been active in advancing the broader scientific field through her leadership and service with leading scientific societies, including the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP) and Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (SRNT). She further works to promote the dissemination of scientific knowledge as an editorial board member currently for Neuropsychopharmacology and eNeuro, and previously with the Journal of Neuroscience. As the recently appointed Co-director of the Irvine Center for Addiction Neuroscience (ICAN), she also leads efforts to advance addiction research on the UCI campus and to engage underserved communities by providing educational sessions to middle- and high-schools students. Dr. Fowler further recognizes the importance of diverse perspectives to most effectively advance discovery in science, and this perspective has been put into action as prior Director of the Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, group leader with the UCI End Racism Initiative, and as a CIMER certified Culturally Aware Mentor Facilitator. Finally, she interfaces with industry partners for therapeutic development, for instance as a member of the Scientific Advisory Board with GATC Health. Through her combined leadership efforts, she aims to exert a sustained positive impact on public health by working to develop new therapeutics to benefit the lives of those seeking to reduce or quit the use of addictive drugs.
Publications: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/myncbi/1Zst8hxGBg9Q7/bibliography/public/