Mary L. Schneider
Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison
Professor, Kinesiology and Psychology

Contact Information:
2120 Medical Sciences Center
1300 University Ave
Madison, WI 53706
Phone: (608) 265-5118
Phone: (608) 265-5118
Fax: 608-262-6020
E-mail: schneider@education.wisc.edu

Research Statement

Our research program focuses on behavioral and neurobiological effects from fetal alcohol exposure alone or in combination with prenatal stress. We study rhesus monkeys, examining growth and development, learning and memory, and stress reactivity across the life span. We also use state-of-the-art neuroimaging techniques to elucidate possible abnormalities in neural processing. We assess dopamine system function, using positron emission tomography, to determine whether altered DA function might underlie some of the motor, learning, and neuroendocrine outcomes associated with these prenatal treatments. We have recently expanded our nonhuman primate model to examine the neurochemical and developmental basis for sensory regulation disorders and risk factors for excessive alcohol consumption in adulthood. Our work is funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

Representative Publications

Schneider ML, Moore CF, Gajewski LL, Larson JA, Roberts AD, Converse AK, DeJesus OT. (2008). Sensory processing disorder in a primate model: evidence from a longitudinal study of prenatal alcohol and prenatal stress effects. Child Development. 2008 Jan-Feb;79(1):100-13.

Kraemer GW, Moore CF, Newman TK, Barr CS, Schneider ML. (2008) Moderate level fetal alcohol exposure and serotonin transporter gene promoter polymorphism affect neonatal temperament and limbic-hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis regulation in monkeys. Biological Psychiatry. 2008 Feb 1;63(3):317-24.

Schneider ML, Moore CF, Gajewski LL, Laughlin NK, Larson JA, Gay CL, Roberts AD, Converse AK, DeJesus OT. (2007) Sensory processing disorders in a nonhuman primate model: evidence for occupational therapy practice. American Journal of Occupational Therapy. 2007 Mar-Apr;61(2):247-53.

Schneider ML, Moore CF, Barnhart TE, Larson JA, DeJesus OT, Mukherjee J, Nickles JR, Converse AK, Roberts AD, Kraemer GW (2005) Moderate level prenatal alcohol exposure alters striatal dopamine system function in rhesus monkeys. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 29 (9), 1685-1697.

Schneider ML, Champoux M, Moore CF (2006). Neurobehavioral assessment of nonhuman primate neonates. In G.P. Sackett, G.C. Ruppenthal, & K. Elias (Eds.), Nursery Rearing of Nonhuman Primates in the 21st Century (pp. 215-247). Springer Science-Business Media, Inc., New York.

Converse, A. K., Barnhart, T., Dabbs, K. A., DeJesus, O. T., Larson, J. A., Nickles, R. J., Schneider, M.L., Roberts, A.D. (2004). PET Measurement of rCBF in the presence of a neurochemical tracer. Journal of Neuroscience Methods, 132, 199-208.

Schneider, M. L., Moore, C. F., & Kraemer, G. W. (2004). Moderate level alcohol during pregnancy, prenatal stress, or both and limbic-hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis response to stress in rhesus monkeys. Child Development, 75(1), 96-109.

Roberts, A. D., Moore, C. F., DeJesus, O. T., Barnhart, T. E., Larson, J. A., Mukherjee, J., Schneider, M.L. (2004). Prenatal stress, moderate fetal alcohol, and dopamine system function in rhesus monkeys. Neurotoxicology and Teratology, 26, 169-178.

Schneider, M. L., Moore, C. F., & Kraemer, G. W. (2003). On the relevance of prenatal stress to developmental psychopathology. In D. Cicchetti & E. F. Walker (Eds.), Neurodevelopmental Mechanisms in Psychopathology (pp. 155-186). Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.

Schneider, M.L., Moore, C.F., Kraemer, G.W., Roberts, A.D., & DeJesus, O.T. (2002). The impact of prenatal stress, fetal alcohol exposure, or both on development: Perspectives from a primate model. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 27, 285 298.

Schneider, ML, Moore, C, Kraemer, GW (2001). Moderate alcohol during pregnancy: Learning and behavior in adolescent monkeys. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. 25 (9).