Author Archives: Jennie Vaughn

Three teams of BCAS faculty, staff, postdocs, and students have been recognized for their efforts in North Carolina’s Miles for Wellness fitness challenge, a virtual, team-based walking initiative by and for the state employees of North Carolina. The BCAS Road Warriors 1 team took fifth place out of 252 teams...

Laura Ornelas, PhD, has been selected as a Mentee for the 2024 American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP) Underrepresented Minority Near-Peer Mentorship program. The ACNP URM Near-Peer Mentorship Program is designed to provide mentorship support from ACNP member mentors to underrepresented minorities who plan to enter or are early career scientists...

Associate Professor of Pharmacology Melissa Herman, PhD, was featured in one of the nation’s most popular science podcasts, Science Vs, in an episode that examines common misconceptions regarding vaping and health. Dr. Herman discussed her lab’s research using preclinical rodent models to examine how nicotine intake via vape exposure affects...

BCAS postdoctoral fellow Jessica Hoffman, PhD, is one of five postdoctoral scholars in 2023 to receive the Postdoctoral Award for Research Excellence (PARE), administered by the UNC Office of Postdoctoral Affairs. The PARE award recognizes outstanding research promise demonstrated by individual postdoctoral scholars. Dr. Hoffman is also a recent recipient...

Leslie Morrow, PhD, and her lab recently published their research on the deleterious interaction between the neurosteroid (3α,5α)3-hydroxypregnan-20-one (3α,5α-THP) and the mu-opioid system activation during forced swim stress in rats in the journal of Biomolecules. In a previous study, Dr. Morrow and her lab observed that 3α,5α-THP down-regulation of HPA...

Melissa Herman, PhD, and her lab recently published their research investigating the relationship between affective states and ethanol (EtOH) intake using male and female Sprague-Dawley rats in the journal Psychopharmacology. Dr. Herman and her team observed sex- and test- specific differences in basal affective behavior. In female rats only, depressive-like...

Leslie Morrow, PhD, and her lab’s research was recently highlighted in an article published by the Wall Street Journal on postpartum depression in the United States. The article emphasizes the extensive range of challenges faced by new mothers in the U.S, including limited access to mental health services, rising healthcare...

Laura Ornelas, PhD, has been selected to participate in the Neuroscience Data Blitz session during the 2023 National Hispanic Science Network (NHSN) conference this September in Washington, D.C. In addition, she received a Travel Award to attend the NHSN and will be presenting work from her NIAAA-funded K99 MOSAIC award....

In an effort to improve safety and emergency preparedness, 11 BCAS faculty, staff, and postdocs received training and certification in Adult and Pediatric CPR/AED. The two-hour class was offered through UNC’s Environment, Health and Safety (EHS) Workplace Safety section, and certification is through the American Red Cross. Classes are available...

Meghan Flanigan, PhD, has recently accepted a new position as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Neuroscience at the Medical University of South Carolina. In this role, she will build upon her significant contributions to alcohol studies research at the Alcohol Research Center. She completed her post-doctoral training under...