Dr. Katrina Choe is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour at McMaster University and a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Neurobiology of Social Behaviour.

After obtaining her bachelor’s degree (University of Toronto), Dr. Choe completed her doctoral thesis on the hydration state-dependent control of vasopressin neuron excitability using in vitro electrophysiological techniques (Charles Bourque lab, McGill University). In her first postdoctoral position (Thomas Otis lab, UCLA), Dr. Choe mapped functional circuits that mediate cerebellum-to-forebrain communication using a combination of optogenetics, in vivo electrophysiology, and mouse fMRI. In her second and final postdoctoral position (Daniel Geschwind lab, UCLA) funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) postdoctoral award and National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) K99/R00 award, Dr. Choe identified a potential mechanistic link between gene mutations, the central oxytocin system, and social deficits in the Cntnap2 knockout mouse model of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) using mouse fMRI, lightsheet imaging, behavioural assays, and RNA-seq.

In 2020, Dr. Choe established her own laboratory at McMaster University, where she and her team apply a multi-level, integrative research strategy to link how gene mutations associated with psychiatric disorders disrupt social behaviour with a particular focus on the central oxytocin system.

When away from the lab, Dr. Choe enjoys travelling, hiking, snowboarding, trying out new cuisines and watching nature documentaries.