Kimberly A. Leite-Morris, PhD
Assistant Professor, Psychiatry
Biography
Dr. Leite-Morris is an Assistant Professor in the Division of Psychiatry and Department of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics at Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine and directs a neurochemistry and behavioral neuroscience laboratory at the VA Boston Healthcare System. Dr. Leite-Morris’ primary research interests are in determining the neurochemical mechanisms that underlie the anticipation, intense “craving” and repeated consumption of ethanol and substance abuse. She has established a rodent model of ethanol-self administration paired with current methods of in vivo microdialysis that procedurally separates and quantifies neurotransmitter levels during the different elements of the addiction process. Her methods incorporate a pharmacological approach utilizing novel therapeutic agents including novel positive allosteric modulators of the GABA receptor that culminate in alterations of dopamine, GABA and glutamate.
Dr. Leite-Morris has established a behavioral phenotyping laboratory at the VABHS to examine fear conditioning and stress as they relate to alcohol-directed behaviors in genetically modified mice.Dr. Leite-Morris’ collaborative projects include opiate reward and extinction, fear conditioning, and alcohol and substance abuse in penetrating brain injury and shock wave. Dr. Leite-Morris received her doctorate from the University of Rhode Island in the Department of Biochemisty and Molecular Genetics and completed her NIAAA NRSA Postdoctoral Fellowship at Brown University’s Center for Alcohol and Addiction Studies where she remains an Affiliate Faculty member. She is supported by a grant from NIAAA. Interested students can contact Dr. Leite-Morris at kleitemo@bu.edu.
Other Positions
- VA Boston Healthcare System
Websites
Education
- University of Rhode Island, PhD
- University of Rhode Island, BS
Publications
- Published on 4/7/2023
Babb JA, Zuberer A, Heinrichs S, Rumbika KK, Alfiler L, Lakis GA, Leite-Morris KA, Kaplan GB. Disturbances in fear extinction learning after mild traumatic brain injury in mice are accompanied by alterations in dendritic plasticity in the medial prefrontal cortex and basolateral nucleus of the amygdala. Brain Res Bull. 2023 Jun 15; 198:15-26. PMID: 37031792.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 8/20/2019
Lim TC, Mandeville E, Weng D, Wang LS, Kurisawa M, Leite-Morris K, Selim MH, Lo EH, Spector M. Hydrogel-Based Therapy for Brain Repair After Intracerebral Hemorrhage. Transl Stroke Res. 2020 06; 11(3):412-417. PMID: 31432328.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 3/12/2018
Carreras I, Aytan N, Mellott T, Choi JK, Lehar M, Crabtree L, Leite-Morris K, Jenkins BG, Blusztajn JK, Dedeoglu A. Corrigendum to "Anxiety, neuroinflammation, cholinergic and GABAergic abnormalities are early markers of Gulf War illness in a mouse model of the disease" [Brain Res. 1681 (2018) 34-43]. Brain Res. 2018 06 01; 1688:113-115. PMID: 29526415.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 12/24/2017
Carreras I, Aytan N, Mellott T, Choi JK, Lehar M, Crabtree L, Leite-Morris K, Jenkins BG, Blusztajn JK, Dedeoglu A. Anxiety, neuroinflammation, cholinergic and GABAergic abnormalities are early markers of Gulf War illness in a mouse model of the disease. Brain Res. 2018 02 15; 1681:34-43. PMID: 29277710.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 11/3/2017
Kaplan GB, Leite-Morris KA, Wang L, Rumbika KK, Heinrichs SC, Zeng X, Wu L, Arena DT, Teng YD. Pathophysiological Bases of Comorbidity: Traumatic Brain Injury and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. J Neurotrauma. 2018 01 15; 35(2):210-225. PMID: 29017388.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 10/16/2017
Maccioni P, Lorrai I, Contini A, Leite-Morris K, Colombo G. Microinjection of baclofen and CGP7930 into the ventral tegmental area suppresses alcohol self-administration in alcohol-preferring rats. Neuropharmacology. 2018 07 01; 136(Pt A):146-158. PMID: 29050951.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 11/26/2014
Maccioni P, Vargiolu D, Thomas AW, Malherbe P, Mugnaini C, Corelli F, Leite-Morris KA, Gessa GL, Colombo G. Inhibition of alcohol self-administration by positive allosteric modulators of the GABAB receptor in rats: lack of tolerance and potentiation of baclofen. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2015 May; 232(10):1831-41. PMID: 25420609.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 1/7/2014
Leite-Morris KA, Kobrin KL, Guy MD, Young AJ, Heinrichs SC, Kaplan GB. Extinction of opiate reward reduces dendritic arborization and c-Fos expression in the nucleus accumbens core. Behav Brain Res. 2014 Apr 15; 263:51-9. PMID: 24406724.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 7/31/2013
Heinrichs SC, Leite-Morris KA, Rasmusson AM, Kaplan GB. Repeated valproate treatment facilitates fear extinction under specific stimulus conditions. Neurosci Lett. 2013 Sep 27; 552:108-13. PMID: 23916657.
Read at: PubMed - Published on 4/6/2013
Heinrichs SC, Leite-Morris KA, Guy MD, Goldberg LR, Young AJ, Kaplan GB. Dendritic structural plasticity in the basolateral amygdala after fear conditioning and its extinction in mice. Behav Brain Res. 2013 Jul 1; 248:80-4. PMID: 23570859.
Read at: PubMed
View 19 more publications: View full profile at BUMC