Russell D. Romeo

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Russell Romeo

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Curriculum Vitae

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Russell D. Romeo, Ph.D.

Address and Contact Information:

Russell D. Romeo, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
Barnard College of Columbia University
Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and Behavior Program
New York, NY 10027
(212) 854-5903 (office)
(212) 854-3601 (fax)
rromeo@barnard.edu

Education:

Edinboro University
B.A. in Psychology, 1993
Villanova University
M.S. in Experimental Psychology, 1995
Michigan State University
Ph.D. in Neuroscience and Psychology, 2001
Rockefeller University
Postdoctoral Fellow

Professional Memberships:

Psi Chi
Sigma Xi
Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology, Member
Society for Neuroscience, Member

Awards:

Young Investigator Award at the Workshop on Steroid Hormones and Brain Function, 2000
The Society for Reproductive Endocrinology Fellowship Research Prize Paper Award, 2002
Wiley Publishers Developmental Psychobiology Student Award, 2003
Young Investigator Award from the Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology, 2006
Young Investigator Award from the Conference on Hormones and Brain Function, 2007

Research Experience:

1992-93 Research Assistant to Dr. Charles Edwards, Department of Psychology, Edinboro University.
1993-95 Research Assistant to Drs. Ingeborg L. and O. Byron Ward, Department of Psychology, Villanova University.
1995-01 Research Assistant to Dr. Cheryl L. Sisk, Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Michigan State University. 2001-06 Postdoctoral Fellow to Dr. Bruce McEwen, Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, Rockefeller University.
2006-07 Research Associate, Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, Rockefeller University.

Ad Hoc Reviewer:

Biology of Reproduction, Journal of Neurobiology, Brain Research, Physiology & Behavior, Molecular Psychiatry, Journal of Comparative Neurology, Hormones and Behavior, Reproduction, Proceedings for National Academy of Sciences, Neuroendocrinology, Hippocampus, Endocrinology, Neuropsychopharmacology, Neuroscience Letters, Psychoneuroendocrinology, Neuroscience, Development Psychobiology, Neurochemical Research, Behavioural Brain Research, Nature Neuroscience, Encyclopedia of Neuroscience, Synapse, Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry, FASEB Journal, Neurotoxicology and Teratology, Experimental Neurology, Journal of Psychopharmacology, Stress

Publications:

1. Akers KG, Yang Z, DelVecchio DP, Reeb BC, Romeo RD, et al. (2008) Social Competitiveness and Plasticity of Neuroendocrine Function in Old Age: Influence of Neonatal Novelty Exposure and Maternal Care Reliability. PLoS ONE 3(7): e2840. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0002840

2. Meek, L. R., Romeo, R. D., Novak, C. M., and Sisk, C. L. (1997). Actions of testosterone in prepubertal and postpubertal male hamsters: dissociation of effects on reproductive behavior and brain androgen receptor immunoreactivity. Hormones and Behavior, 31:75-88.

3. Romeo, R. D., Parfitt, D. B., Richardson, H. N., and Sisk, C. L. (1998). Pheromones elicit equivalent levels of Fos-immunoreactivity in prepubertal and adult male Syrian hamsters. Hormones and Behavior, 34:48-55.

4. Romeo, R.D., Wade, J., Venier, J. E., and Sisk, C. L. (1999). Androgenic regulation of hypothalamic aromatase activity in prepubertal and postpubertal male golden hamsters. Endocrinology, 140:112-117.

5. Richardson, H. N., Romeo, R. D., and Sisk, C. L. (1999). Regional changes in GnRH immunoreactivity with puberty in the male Syrian hamster. Brain Research, 817:232-235.

6. Romeo, R. D., Diedrich, S. L., and Sisk, C. L. (1999). Estrogen receptor-immunoreactivity in prepubertal and adult male Syrian hamsters. Neuroscience Letters, 265:167-170.

7. Ward, I. L., Romeo, R. D., Denning, J. H., and Ward, O. B. (1999). Fetal alcohol exposure blocks full masculinization of the dorsolateral nucleus in rat spinal cord. Physiology & Behavior, 66:571-575.

8. Parfitt, D. B., Thompson, R. C., Richardson, H. N., Romeo, R. D., and Sisk, C. L. (1999). GnRH mRNA increases with puberty in the male Syrian hamster brain. Journal of Neuroendocrinology, 11:621-627.

9. Romeo, R. D., Diedrich, S. L., Sisk, C. L. (2000). The effects of gonadal steroids during puberty on androgen and estrogen receptor-a immunoreactivity in the hypothalamus and amygdala. Journal of Neurobiology, 44:361-368.

10. Romeo, R. D. and Sisk, C. L. (2001). Pubertal and seasonal plasticity in the amygdala. Brain Research, 889:71-77.

11. Romeo, R. D., Cook-Wiens, E., Richardson, H. N., and Sisk, C. L. (2001). Dihydrotestosterone activates sexual behavior in adult male hamsters but not juveniles. Physiology & Behavior, 73:579-584.

12. Romeo, R. D., Wagner, C. K., Jansen, H. T., Diedrich, S. L., and Sisk, C. L. (2002). Estradiol induces hypothalamic progesterone receptors, but does not activate mating behavior in males prior to puberty. Behavioral Neuroscience, 116:198-205.

13. Romeo, R. D., Richardson, H. N., and Sisk, C. L. (2002). Puberty and the maturation of the male brain and sexual behavior: recasting a behavioral potential. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews, 26: 381-391.

14. Romeo, R. D., Mueller, A., Sisti, H. M., Ogawa, S., McEwen, B. S., and Brake, W. G. (2003). Anxiety and fear behaviors in adult male and female C57BL/6 mice are modulated by maternal separation. Hormones and Behavior, 44:561-567.

15. Romeo, R. D., Schulz-Wilson, K. M., Nelson, A. L., Menard, T. A., and Sisk, C. L. (2003). Testosterone, puberty, and the pattern of male aggressive behavior in Syrian hamsters. Developmental Psychobiology, 43:102-108.

16. Tang, A. C., Reeb, B. C., Romeo, R. D., McEwen, B. S. (2003). Modification of social memory, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis, and brain asymmetry by neonatal novelty exposure. Journal of Neuroscience, 23:8254-8260.

17. Schulz K. M., Richardson H. N., Romeo R. D., Morris J. A., Lookingland K. J., and Sisk C. L. (2003). Medial preoptic area dopaminergic response to female pheromones develop during puberty in the male Syrian hamster. Brain Research, 988:139-145.

18. Choi, J. M., Romeo, R. D., Brake, W. G., Bethea, C. L., Rosenwaks, Z., and McEwen B. S. (2003). Estradiol increases pre- and post-synaptic proteins in the CA1 region of the hippocampus in female rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta). Endocrinology, 144:4734-4738.

19. Romeo, R. D. (2003). Puberty: a period of both organizational and activational effects of steroid hormones on neurobehavioural development. Journal of Neuroendocrinology, 15:1185-1192.

20. Richardson, H. N., Gore, A. C., Venier, J., Romeo, R. D., and Sisk, C. L. (2004). Increased expression of forebrain GnRH mRNA and changes in testosterone negative feedback following pubertal maturation. Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology, 214:63-70.

21. Romeo, R. D. and McEwen B. S. (2004). Sex differences in steroid-induced synaptic plasticity. In V. M. Miller and M. Hay (Eds.), Advances in Molecular and Cell Biology: Principles of Sex-Based Differences in Physiology, Elsevier Science, London 34:247-258.

22. Li, C. Brake, W. G., Romeo, R. D., Dunlop, J. C., Gordon, M., Buzescu, R., Margarinos, A. M., Allen, P. Greengard, P. Luine, V., and McEwen, B. S. (2004). Estrogen treatment alters hippocampal dendritic spine shape, enhances synaptic protein immunoreactivity and performance in a spatial working memory task in female C57BL/6J mice. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 101:2185-2190.

23. Romeo, R. D., Lee, S. J., Chhua, N., McPherson, C. R., and McEwen, B. S. (2004). Testosterone cannot activate an adult-like stress response in prepubertal male rats. Neuroendocrinology, 79:125-132.

24. Romeo, R. D., and McEwen, B. S. (2004). The effects of steroid hormones on the brain. In L. Martini (Ed.) Encyclopedia of Endocrinology and Endocrine Diseases, Academic Press, San Diego. Vol 1:414-418.

25. Romeo, R. D., Fossella, J. A., Bateup, H. S., Sisti, H. M., Brake, W. G., and McEwen, B. S. (2004). Maternal separation suppresses TGFa mRNA expression in the prefrontal cortex of male and female neonatal C57BL/6 mice. Developmental Brain Research, 152:73-77.

26. Lee, S. J., Romeo, R. D., Svenningsson, P., Campomanes, C. R., Allen, P. B., Greengard, P. and McEwen, B. S. (2004). Estradiol affects spinophilin protein differently in gonadectomized males and females. Neuroscience, 127:983-988.

27. Richardson, H. N., Nelson, A. L., Ahmed, E. I., Parfitt, D. B., Romeo, R. D., Sisk, C. L. (2004). Female pheromones stimulate release of luteinizing hormone and testosterone without altering GnRH mRNA in adult male Syrian hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus). General and Comparative Endocrinology, 138:211-217.

28. Romeo, R. D., Lee, S. J., and McEwen, B. S. (2004). Differential stress reactivity in intact and ovariectomized prepubertal and adult female rats. Neuroendocrinology, 80:387-393.

29. Tang, A. C., Nakazawa, M., Romeo, R. D., Reeb, B., Sisti, H., and McEwen B. S. (2005). Effects of long-term estrogen replacement on social investigation and recognition memory in ovariectomized C57BL/6 mice. Hormones and Behavior, 47:350-357.

30. Romeo, R. D., Staub, D., Jasnow, A. M., Karatsoreos, I. N., Thronton, J. E., McEwen, B. S. (2005). Dihydrotestosterone increases hippocampal NMDA binding but does not affect choline acetyltransferase cell number in the forebrain or choline transporter levels in the CA1 region of adult male rats. Endocrinology, 146:2091-2097.

31. Tabori, N. E., Stewart, L. S., Znamensky, V., Romeo, R. D., Alves, S. E., McEwen, B. S., and Milner, T. A. (2005). Ultrastructural evidence that androgen receptors are located at extra nuclear sites in the rat hippocampal formation. Neuroscience, 130:151-163.

32. Romeo. R. D., Waters, E. M., and McEwen B. S. (2005). Steroid-induced hippocampal synaptic plasticity: sex differences and similarities. Neural Glia Biology, 1:219-229.

33. Romeo, R. D., (2005). Neuroendocrine and behavioral development during puberty: a tale of two axes. Vitamins and Hormones. 71:1-25.

34. Romeo, R. D., McCarthy J. B., Wang, A., Milner, T. A., and McEwen B. S. (2005). Sex differences in hippocampal estradiol-induced NMDA binding and ultrastructural localization of estrogen receptor alpha. Neuroendocrinology. 81:391-399.

35. Priebe, K., Romeo, R. D., Sisti, M. H., Mueller, A., Francis, D. D., McEwen, B. S., and Brake W. G. (2005). Maternal influences on adult stress and anxiety-like behavior in C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice: a cross-fostering study. Developmental Psychobiology. 47:398-407.

36. Romeo, R. D., Bellani, R., and McEwen B. S. (2005). Pubertal changes in stress-induced progesterone secretion and progesterone receptors in the paraventricular nucleus of male rats. Stress. 8:265-271.

37. Romeo, R. D., and McEwen, B. S. (2006). The neonatal and pubertal ontogeny of the stress response: implications for adult physiology and behavior. In B. Arnetz and R. Ekman (eds.) Stress in Health and Disease, Wiley Publishers, Weinheim, Germany, 165-179.

38. Karatsoreos, I. N., Romeo, R. D., McEwen, B. S., and Silver, R. (2006). Diurnal regulation of gastrin-releasing peptide receptor in the mouse circadian clock. European Journal of Neuroscience. 23:1047-1053.

39. Romeo, R. D., Bellani, R., Karatsoreos, I. N., Chhua, N., Vernov, M. A., Conrad, C. D., and McEwen B. S. (2006). Stress history and pubertal development interact to shape hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis plasticity. Endocrinology. 147:1664-1674.

40. Akers, K. G., Nakazawa, M., Romeo, R. D., Connor, J. A., McEwen, B. S., and Tang, A. C. (2006). Early life modulators and predictors of adult synaptic plasticity. European Journal of Neuroscience. 24:547-554

41. Romeo, R. D., Karatsoreos, I. N., and McEwen B. S. (2006). Pubertal maturation and time of day differentially affect behavioral and neuroendocrine responses following an acute stress. Hormones and Behavior, 50:463-468.

42. Tang, A. C., Akers, K. G., Reeb, B. C., Romeo, R. D., McEwen, B. S. (2006). Programming social, cognitive, and neuroendocrine development by early exposure to novelty. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 103:15716-15721.

43. Romeo, R. D. and McEwen, B. S. (2006). Stress and the adolescent brain. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1094:202-214.

44. Romeo, R. D., Karatsoreos, I. N., Ali, F. S., and McEwen, B. S. (2007). The effects of acute stress and pubertal development on metabolic hormones. Stress, 10:101-106.

45. Karatsoreos, I. N., Vernov, M. and Romeo, R. D. (2007). Testosterone and the brain: implications for cognition, biological rhythms and aging. In L. I. Ardis (ed.) Testosterone Research Trends, Nova Science Publishers, Inc. New York, 91-103.

46. Hunter, R. G., Bellani, R., Bloss, E., Costa, A., Romeo, R. D., and McEwen, B. S. (2007). Regulation of CART mRNA by stress and corticosteroids in the hippocampus and amygdala. Brain Research, 1152:234-240.

47. Romeo, R. D., Karatsoreos, I. N., Jasnow, A. M., and McEwen, B. S. (2007). Age- and stress-induced changes in corticotropin-releasing hormone mRNA expression in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus. Neuroendocrinology, 85:199-206.

48. Gray J. D., Punsoni, M., Tabori, N. E., Melton, J. T., Fanslow, V., Ward, M. J., Zupan, B., Menzer, D., Rice, J., Drake, C. T., Romeo, R. D., Brake, W. G., Torres-Reveron, A., Milner, T. A. (2007). Methylphenidate administration to juvenile rats alters brain areas involved in cognition, motivated behaviors, appetite and stress. Journal of Neuroscience, 27:7196-7207.

49. Becker, J. B., Monteggia, L. M., Perrot-Sinal, T. S., Romeo, R. D., Taylor, J. R., Yehuda, R., and Bale, T. L. (2007). Stress and disease: is being female a predisposing factor? Journal of Neuroscience, 27:11851-11855.

50. Spencer, J. L., Waters, E. M., Romeo, R. D., Wood, G. E., Milner, T. A., and McEwen B. S. (2008). Uncovering the mechanisms of estrogen effects on hippocampal function. Frontiers of Neuroendocrinology, 29:219-237.

51. Romeo, R. D., Ali, F. S., Karatsoreos, I. N., Bellani, R., Chhua, N., Vernov, M., and McEwen, B. S. (2008). Glucocorticoid receptor mRNA expression in the hippocampal formation in male rats before and after pubertal development in response to acute or repeated stress. Neuroendocrinology, 87:160-167.

52. Jasnow, A. M., Mong, J. A., Romeo, R. D., and Pfaff, D. W. (in press). Estrogenic regulation of gene and protein expression within the amygdala of female mice. Endocrine.

Invited Colloquium:

Workshop on Steroid Hormones and Brain Function, Breckenridge, CO, 2000
Department of Biology, University of Virginia, 2000
Conference on Borderline Personality Disorder, Basel, Switzerland, 2002
Department of Psychology, SUNY Albany, 2002
Department of Psychology, Columbia University, 2002
Department of Biology, Columbia University, 2003
Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Duke University, 2004
Sackler Institute for Developmental Psychobiology, Columbia University Medical School, 2004
Tri-Institute Colloquium, Sloan Kettering, Rockefeller University, Cornell Medical School, 2004
Sackler Institute for Developmental Psychobiology, Cornell University Medical School, 2004
American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, Annual Meeting, San Juan, Puerto Rico, 2004
Department of Psychology, Columbia University, 2005
Conference on Cell-Cell Interactions in Synaptic Plasticity, Wye River, MD, 2005
Conference on Reproductive Behavior and Environmental Pollutants, Stockholm, Sweden, 2005
Department of Psychology, University of Chicago, 2006
Pugwash Northeast Regional Conference, New York, NY, 2006
Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology Annual Meeting, Pittsburgh, PA, 2006
Department of Psychology, Barnard College, 2006
School of Health Sciences, Hunter College, 2007
Steroids and the Nervous System, Turino, Italy, 2007
Department of Psychology, Hunter College, 2007
Cornell University School of Medicine, 2007
U.S. Trust and The Barrus Family Foundation, New York, NY 2007
Society for Neuroscience, Mini-Symposium, San Diego, CA, 2007
Sackler Institute for Developmental Psychobiology, Cornell University Medical School, 2007
Sarah Lawrence College, Department of Biology, Bronxville, NY, 2007
1199SEIU, Continuing Education, Stress in the Workplace Symposium, New York, NY, 2007
Sackler Institute for Developmental Psychobiology, Columbia University Medical School, 2008
Workshop on Steroid Hormones and Brain Function, Key Largo, FL, 2008

Press Releases and News Coverage:

Endocrine News (March 2006). Stress response in prepubertal vs. adult rats. pg.8
The New York Sun (July, 19 2007). Report: Ritalin may alter children’s brain.
MedicalNewsToday.com (July 2007). New study suggests pediatric Ritalin use may affect developing brain.
Journal of Neuroscience “This Week in the Journal” Vol.27 pg i. Rats on Ritalin.
The Scientist (August 2007). The brain on stress. pg. 52-58.
Press Conference “The Teenage Brain”; Society for Neuroscience, San Diego, CA, 2007 ScienceDaily.com “Why teens are such risk-takers”