Brett Marie Frye

Research Fellow for Comparative Medicine/Pathology

Brett uses a life course perspective to investigate how environmental factors interact to shape health trajectories. She has worked with several nonhuman primate (NHP) models of human health, including marmosets, cynomolgus monkeys, and vervets. Previously, Brett explored how antenatal environments influenced reproductive, health, and survival outcomes in marmosets, an important model for maternal programming and neuroscience. Recently, Brett pivoted from examining early- to late windows of sensitivity. Her current projects encompass two complementary aims: 1) to investigate the effects of Mediterranean versus Western diets on physical function and metabolic perturbations that increase Alzheimer’s disease (AD) risk and 2) to develop vervets as a NHP model of neurodegeneration and cognitive decline that also is relevant to understanding the etiopathology of AD. Brett hopes this comprehensive, integrative approach will help clarify the mechanisms underlying divergent aging trajectories and inspire interventions that increase resilience to age-related conditions.