The research goals of our laboratory are to characterize the cognitive and brain changes that occur during aging, as well as to develop behavioral, pharmacological, and dietary strategies to attenuate mnemonic and neurobiological age-related alterations using animal models. Towards this goal, one of our primary interests is to determine the roles that sex, hormones, and brain chemistry play in brain function and cognition in young versus aged animals. Our interests incorporate these goals with relevance to Alzheimer’s disease-related variables.

One of our primary goals is to determine the effects that clinically used ovarian hormone therapies have on the brain and its function. For example, we have been studying the effects of estradiol, Premarin and progestins on cognition and neurobiology, using several types of rodent models of menopause. Please see "Publications" for our recently published research, and feel free to look around our lab website by clicking on the topics to the left.

Bimonte-Nelson Lab 2011:

                                                                                                                  ^{Lab group photos above by O.P. Parrish.}

Our lab in the news!

Hormone in birth control shot linked to memory loss: http://researchmatters.asu.edu/stories/hormone-birth-control-shot-linked-memory-loss-2059

Bimonte-Nelson Lab post-doc Jazmin Acosta has received the 2011 Young Investigator Award from the European Brain and Behavior Society! Jazmin will be going to Seville, Spain Sept. 9-12, 2011 to give a talk. Visit the European Brain and Behavior Society website at: http://www.ebbs-seville2011.com/.

Congratulations to Bimonte-Nelson Lab graduate student Dr. Joshua Talboom, who defended his PhD in the summer of 2011! Also, Josh was able to meet with Nobel Laureates in the summer of 2011! A coveted spot at the prestigious 61st annual Meeting of Nobel Laureates in Lindau, Germany was awarded to Joshua. For full news story, see: http://asunews.asu.edu/20110303_Talboom

Bimonte-Nelson Lab graduate student Sarah Mennenga won FIRST PLACE for graduate-level poster presentation for the Social and Behavioral Sciences at the 2011 Emerging Researchers National (ERN) Conference (STEM). To see pictures: ...

Bimonte-Nelson Lab undergraduate honor student Itamar Grunfeld is a top-three nominee for 2011 Best Honors Thesis. Congrats, Itamar!

To read about the 2011 ASU Brain Fair for Children, organized by the Bimonte-Nelson lab and the Psychology Department, see:
http://asunews.asu.edu/20100405_brainfair

"ASU neuroscientist earns 'difference maker' award for work with students": asunews.asu.edu/20100511_krahenbuhl

Above: Heather and elementary student Sabrina at the 2010 ASU Brain Fair

Bimonte-Nelson Lab 2010:

Bimonte-Nelson Lab 2009:

Bimonte-Nelson Lab 2007-2008:

We are proud that in 2010, Dr. Bimonte-Nelson received the "Krahenbuhl Difference Maker Award", as well as the "Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium Outstanding Young Investigator Award” and the "Woodside Sustained Community Service Award" for bringing Brain Awareness to schools in the Valley in 2007.

Our beloved friend, colleague and mentor, Dr. Victor Denenberg, passed away on Saturday, July 19, 2008. For many of his students, he will be remembered as one of the critical figures that changed their lives. He was truly a visionary and philosopher, and will be deeply missed. Click here for remembrances.