Elizabeth Sowell, PhD

Investigator, Research on Children, Youth and Families

Professor of Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine of USC

Institute for the Developing Mind

Research Areas of Emphasis

Developmental Neuroscience/Neurodevelopmental Disorders

Neuroimaging/Radiological Sciences

Psychiatric Disorders/Childhood mental health

Children, Youth and Families

Area of Research

Community Health

Neurosciences

Research Specialties

Developmental Cognitive Neuroimaging

Contact Information

Phone: 323-361-7347Office

Summary
Publications
Research
Media
Locations

Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study at CHLA is currently recruiting participants

The National Institutes of Health has launched a landmark study about the developing brain called the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study. The ABCD study is a national longitudinal study that will recruit 10,000 youths and follow them over 10 years into early adulthood. The study seeks to address questions related to this critical developmental period including possible links to the risk for mental illness, the impact on physical health, psychological development, learning and memory and other behaviors. To learn more about the ABCD study, visit abcdstudy.org.

Principal Investigator: Dr. Elizabeth Sowell

Site Coordinator: Trinh Luu

Phone: (323) 361-7756

Email: abcd@chla.usc.edu Website: http://abcdstudy.org/sites/chla.html

Education

Medical School:

University of California, Irvine, B.A. (Psychology); San Diego State University/University of California at San Diego, Joint Doctoral Program in Clinical Psychology, Ph.D. (Neuropsychology)

Internship:

University of Florida, Gainesville (Neuropsychology)

Accomplishments

Professional Memberships:

Society Memberships: Professional Flux Congress, 2013-Present; Organization for Human Brain Mapping, 2007-Present; Society for Neuroscience, 2000-Present

Publications:

Pregnancy: No safe level of alcohol. Sowell ER, Charness ME, Riley EP. Nature. 2014 Sep 11;513(7517):172. doi: 10.1038/513172c. No abstract available.

Developmental Trajectories for Visuo-Spatial Attention are Altered by Prenatal Alcohol Exposure: A Longitudinal FMRI Study. Gautam P, Nuñez SC, Narr KL, Mattson SN, May PA, Adnams CM, Riley EP, Jones KL, Kan EC, Sowell ER. Cereb Cortex. 2014 Aug 4. pii: bhu162. [Epub ahead of print]

The clinical utility and specificity of parent report of executive function among children with prenatal alcohol exposure. Nguyen TT, Glass L, Coles CD, Kable JA, May PA, Kalberg WO, Sowell ER, Jones KL, Riley EP, Mattson SN; CIFASD. J Int Neuropsychol Soc. 2014 Aug20(7):704-16. doi: 10.1017/S1355617714000599. Epub 2014 Jul 17.

The role of testosterone and estradiol in brain volume changes across adolescence: A longitudinal structural MRI study. Herting MM, Gautam P, Spielberg JM, Kan E, Dahl RE, Sowell ER. Hum Brain Mapp. 2014 Nov;35(11):5633-45. doi: 10.1002/hbm.22575. Epub 2014 Jun 30.

Effects of prenatal alcohol exposure on the development of white matter volume and change in executive function. Gautam P, Nuñez SC, Narr KL, Kan EC, Sowell ER. Neuroimage Clin. 2014 Jun 4;5:19-27. doi: 10.1016/j.nicl.2014.05.010. eCollection 2014.

Publications on PubMed

Research Interests:

Elizabeth Sowell, PhD and her team have been dedicated to understanding how the brain changes in structure and function both in typically developing children and adolescent populations, and in populations with neurodevelopmental disorders such as fetal alcohol syndrome and autism spectrum disorders. The ultimate goal of this research is to determine how changes in the brain relate to changes in behavior and cognitive function, and to identify opportunities for educational, behavioral and pharmacologic intervention to alter abnormal patterns of brain development.

Visit the Sowell Laboratory.

CHLA - Children’s Hospital Los Angeles Awarded $6.8 Million Five-Year Grant to Help Lead National Consortium on Healthy Brain Development

ScienceDaily - Risk of lead exposure linked to decreased brain volume in adolescents

ABC-TV - UCLA, CHLA Study Looks At How Kids Grow Up To Be Successful

National Public Radio-Marketplace – Socioeconomic status could be affecting childrens' brains

NBC News – Being Poor affects Kids’ Brains. Study Finds

The New Yorker - What Poverty Does to the Young Brain

Nature – Poverty shrinks brains from birth: Studies show that children from low-income families have smaller brains and lower cognitive abilities

Science – Poverty may affect the growth of children’s brains

The San Diego Union Tribune – Higher income linked to smarter kids

Los Angeles Times – Can money buy your kids a bigger brain?

The Guardian – Brain development in children could be affected by poverty, study shows