Stephanie Correa

Stephanie Correa is an Associate Professor in the Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology at UCLA. Stephanie has a BA in Biology from Pomona College and a PhD in Neurobiology and Behavior from Cornell University. Her research seeks to understand the effects of sex steroid hormones and other sex-related variables on physiology. As a PhD student, Stephanie tested the effects of ovarian steroids on sex determination in birds. As a postdoc at Boston University Medical Center, Stephanie switched to studying mice and identified strain-specific alleles that compromise testis development. As a postdoc at UCSF, Stephanie helped identify neurons in the hypothalamus that regulate physical activity and bone health in female mice.

The Correa lab is broadly interested in understanding how reproductive hormones modulate the neural circuits that control temperature and energy balance. Their research combines manipulations of reproductive hormone states in combination with genetically engineered mouse models, viral tools, and transcriptional profiling to identify hypothalamic neurons that mediate the effects of estrogens on feeding, thermogenesis, and basal metabolic rate. These studies provide new insights into how estrogens affect physiology and the brain. Additionally, they identify specific neuron populations and gene targets that could be exploited to treat menopausal hot flushes or weight gain without the risks associated with estrogen therapy.