Natalia Duque-Wilckens, DVM, PhD
Assistant Professor, Dept. of Biological Sciences
NC State University
She/her
About the speaker: The overarching goal of my research is to identify the neuroimmune mechanisms by which distinct early-life stressors—whether psychological, chemical, or immune in nature—shape lifelong susceptibility to disease across the brain and body.
My work is grounded in a strong interdisciplinary foundation spanning veterinary medicine, neuroscience, immunology, and an expanding focus on toxicology. I began my scientific training as a veterinarian at the University of Chile, where I specialized in clinical neurology and conducted my dissertation research on how early-life environmental enrichment influences sleep architecture in rat models. This project deepened my interest in neuroscience and led me to pursue a PhD at the University of California, Davis. My research at UC Davis identified an oxytocin circuit within the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST)—a region not traditionally recognized as a site of oxytocin production—that is selectively activated in threatening or uncertain social contexts and promotes social vigilance. These findings revealed a form of context-specific circuit activation that provides a biological mechanism supporting the social salience hypothesis of oxytocin, which posits that—rather than functioning solely as a “love hormone”—oxytocin enhances the salience of both positive and negative social cues, driving context-appropriate behavioral responses. We further found that this BNST circuit remains persistently more active following social stress in females than in males, offering a potential mechanism for the heightened female vulnerability to social anxiety disorders.
Increasingly intrigued by growing evidence that the immune system shapes brain development and behavior, I pivoted toward immunology during my postdoctoral training at Michigan State University. My work focused on the transcriptional modulation of mast cell function in the context of allergy and infection. Inspired by the unique biology of mast cells—long-lived, body-wide immune sentinels capable of rapid, multimodal signaling that can influence both physiological and behavioral responses—and by my deepening interest in neurodevelopment, I spearheaded a project demonstrating that maternal separation stress during early postnatal development persistently enhances stress reactivity in meningeal mast cells, leading to increased susceptibility to depressive-like behaviors in adulthood. These findings provided the first evidence that mast cells—traditionally viewed as “allergy cells”—may play a critical role in linking early-life adversity to psychiatric vulnerability. This work further solidified my interest in how the immune system integrates early-life exposures to shape long-term risk for pathology. Since joining NC State University in 2023, and with support from the Center for Human Health and the Environment (CHHE), my lab has focused on projects examining how early-life exposure to flame retardants and microplastics alters mast cell biology, potentially enhancing neuroimmune sensitivity to later-life stressors and increasing susceptibility to both physical and neurobehavioral dysfunction.
Friday, October 31, 2025
Field Auditorium, Room 1112, Grainger Hall (9 Circuit Drive, Durham, NC)
This seminar will also be presented live via Panopto. Click HERE for the livestream.