Heather Bradshaw, Ph.D.

Dr. Bradshaw's Biography

My research program combines the fields of neurophysiology, behavior, and lipid biochemistry to understand how lipid signaling drives changes in cellular communication.  A central focus of my research relies on lipidomics discovery and characterization of endogenous lipids (endolipids) using mass spectrometric and signaling assays with a special emphasis on understanding their biosynthesis and metabolism.  Ongoing investigations of the endogenous cannabinoid signaling molecule, N-arachidonoyl ethanolamine (Anandamide) in my lab, drove the discovery of more than 80 endogenous structural analogs, which we have shown to be produced in the brain and throughout the body in both vertebrates and invertebrates.  Recently, we have demonstrated that the classes of endolipids that we study are differentially regulated by each of the enzymes and receptors associated with the endogenous cannabinoid system.  In addition, we have shown that drugs of abuse like Cannabis and opioids, likewise regulate these classes of endolipids. 

Professionally, I have served as conference session Chair at a wide range of organizations, though my focus has largely been working with the International Cannabinoid Research Society (ICRS) for which I was elected President in 2016.  This is a three-year term in which year two required that I organize and lead the 2017 scientific meeting of the ICRS in Leiden, Netherlands.  I have served on the ICRS board since 2016 and recently took the lead on the NIH R13 for trainee support for the ICRS annual meetings.  In 2016 I was named a National Academy of Science Kavli Scholar and attended that year’s cohort meeting, and in 2019 I was named “Graduate of Distinction” at my PhD alma mater, Florida State University.  In 2018 I advanced to the rank of Professor of Psychological and Brain Sciences at Indiana University where I have been since 2004.