Biography
Catherine Tocci graduated from Smith College in 2014 with a B.A. in Neuroscience. After graduation, Catherine worked for two years as a Research Assistant at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, MA studying mouse models of movement disorders. She then continued on as a Clinical Research Coordinator at the Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging affiliated with Massachusetts General Hospital. While at the Martinos Center, Catherine utilized neuroimaging techniques (i.e. MRI, MEG, and EEG) to explore the impact of sleep spindles on cognitive deficits associated with psychiatric conditions, specifically Schizophrenia and Autism. Catherine is currently a doctoral student in Clinical Psychology (Neuropsychology Track) at the University of Florida under the mentorship of Dr. William Perlstein.
Research Focus
Catherine’s primary clinical and research interests include using neurorehabilitation to treat cognitive deficits associated with mild and moderate traumatic brain injury, as well as the integration of neuroimaging in diagnosing, monitoring, and augmenting neurorehabilitation efforts.
Publications
Bonsall, D. R., Kim, H., Tocci, C., Ndiaye, A., Petronzio, A., McKay-Corkum, G., Molyneux, P.C., Scammell, T.E. & Harrington, M. E. (2015). Suppression of locomotor activity in female C57Bl/6J mice treated with interleukin-1β: investigating a method for the study of fatigue in laboratory animals. PloS one, 10(10), e0140678.
Tocci, C., Mylonas, D., Kohnke, E., Coon, W.G., Vangel, M.G., Stickgold, R., Manoach, D.S. (in preparation). Can naps provide an accurate and reliable assessment of nocturnal sleep spindle density?
Presentations
Tocci, C., Kohnke, E. Mylonas, D., Baran, B., Parr, E., Stickgold, R., Manoach, D.S. Comparison of Spindle Density and Procedural Memory Reliability in Nap and Overnight Sleep. American Professional Sleep Society Annual Meeting, Boston, June, 2017.
Ashton, C.E., Tocci C., Laracuente, R., Sorberg E.E., Solis-Cohen, L., Horn, S., Lasker, A.,Vanderhorst, V., Shih, L.C. Spatio-temporal Analysis and Modeling of Gait in Parkinson’s Disease. American Neurological Association, Baltimore, October, 2016.
Leadership
Head of New Students, Smith College, 2011-2012
Student Athletic Advisory Committee Member, Smith College, 2011-2012