Erica Young '05

Erica Young


Concentration: Psychobiology

Scientist, Scripps Research Institute

 

Erica Young graduated from the Wilkes Honors College in 2005 with a concentration in Psychobiology. She earned her doctorate in neuroscience from the University of Virginia in 2010 where her research focused on understanding the emotionally dependent release of neurotransmitters in the amygdala. In 2015, she took the position of staff scientist at Scripps Research Institute in Jupiter.

Dr. Young has been key to the discovery that methamphetamine-associated memories are vulnerable to disruption by targeting actin cytoskeleton dynamics in the amygdala. This discovery has generated a lot of interest as a potential therapy for substance abuse, not only from the scientific community, but also in the popular press. Dr. Young also teaches an Honors Drugs and Behavior course at the WHC. In 2016, Dr. Young was recognized for her accomplishments with the FAU Alumni Association’s Distinguished Alumni Award.

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