Protecting Your Brain During Hormonal Shifts | Annegret Falkner | One Scientist's Mind

2025 One Mind Rising Star Awardee, Dr. Annegret Falkner is protecting mood and decision-making during hormonal shifts—paving the way for next-generation, targeted hormone treatments without the side effects. Dr. Annegret Falkner’s research maps how social experiences and hormonal states reshape brain circuits to influence perception, motivation, and decision-making, revealing neural mechanisms that drive complex social behaviors. Watch this full interview with Dr. Annegret Falkner and One Mind CEO Dr. Kathy Pike, as they discuss Dr. Falkner's One Mind funded research project: Precision Circuit-Targeted Hormone Therapies for Mood Disorders. Annegret Falkner, Ph.D., is an Assistant Professor at the Princeton Neuroscience Institute, where she studies how social experiences and hormonal changes shape brain circuits and behavior. Her lab investigates the neural basis of social decision-making, focusing on how internal states like dominance, defeat, and hormonal fluctuations influence perception, motivation, and behavioral choice. Using genetic tools, in vivo physiology, and optical recording in mice, her work maps how brain regions such as the hypothalamus, amygdala, and midbrain process social and sensory information. Dr. Falkner earned her B.A. in biology and biochemistry from Oberlin College, her Ph.D. in neuroscience from Columbia University, and completed postdoctoral training at New York University. ABOUT ONE MIND One Mind is a leading global nonprofit dedicated to improving mental health outcomes for individuals, families, and society. One Mind brings more than 30 years of leadership to closing critical gaps between discovery and real-world impact, advancing solutions that improve prevention, diagnosis, treatment, and well-being at scale. Guided by science and lived experience, One Mind’s portfolio of integrated programs is creating lasting change while fueling hope for the future of mental health. One Mind Research invests in groundbreaking research and next-gen scientific leaders; the One Mind Accelerator backs bold and determined founders of early-stage startups with the education and network to build category-defining companies that radically improve the lives of people facing mental health challenges; One Mind at Work equips leaders around the globe to integrate proven mental health practices into the workplace; and the One Mind Lived Experience Initiative informs high-impact mental health solutions by imparting vital insights and expertise. With science as our foundation and people at the center of everything we do, One Mind is shaping a more effective, inclusive, and hopeful mental health ecosystem. FOLLOW ONE MIND Facebook:   / onemindorg   Instagram:   / onemindorg   Twitter:   / onemindorg   TikTok:   / onemindorg   Website: https://onemind.org #Hormones #Estrogen #Testosterone #Health #MentalHealth #Science #BrainHealthForAll #OneMind