KEVIN M. COOK, Ph.D. Research Faculty, (Assistant Professor of Pediatrics Tenure Track)
Kevin M. Cook, Ph.D., is Research Faculty (Assistant Professor of Pediatrics Tenure Track) at the Developing Brain Institute (DBI) where he focuses on the impact of early perturbations to the developing brain on later neurodevelopment. Kevin’s interests center around how exposures to early stressors during the neonatal and prenatal periods alter brain development in preterm infants and in utero fetuses. His work explores how early changes to the brain influence neurodevelopmental trajectories with an emphasis on risk for neurodevelopmental disorders, such as autism spectrum disorder and attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder.
Prior to joining DBI in 2020, Kevin completed his BA in psychology at Skidmore College and MA in clinical psychology at the University of Hartford. He completed his Ph.D. in neuroscience from Georgetown University in 2020, where he predominantly worked with children diagnosed with autism. Focusing on the hippocampus, Kevin used functional magnetic resonance imaging to explore the relationship between atypical brain activations during a flexible memory task and difficulties with real-world behavioral flexibility. He also conducted analyses of a large-scale resting state database to characterize broad differences in hippocampal connectivity in children diagnosed with autism.
Kevin then joined DBI as a postdoctoral research fellow to expand his research training into the exciting area of perinatal neuroscience, allowing him to adapt his research to focus on the earliest periods of fetal brain development. During this time, he has been able to identify sex differences in the early functional connectome, evaluate the impact of neighborhood disadvantage on the developing brain, and characterize the impact of early life exposure to pain in the neonatal intensive care unit on brain development and later risk for neurodevelopmental delays and disorders.
Address: 111 Michigan Ave. NW; Washington, D.C., 20010
Email: [email protected]
Department: MRI Lab
Recent publications
2024 | April
Damera SR, De Asis-Cruz J, Cook KM, Kapse K, Spoehr E, Murnick J, Basu S, Andescavage N, Limperopoulos C. Regional homogeneity as a marker of sensory cortex dysmaturity in preterm infants. iScience. 2024 Apr 4;27(5):109662. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109662. PMID: 38665205; PMCID: PMC11043889
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38665205/
Damera SR, De Asis-Cruz J, Cook KM, Kapse K, Spoehr E, Murnick J, Basu S, Andescavage N, Limperopoulos C. Regional homogeneity as a marker of sensory cortex dysmaturity in preterm infants. iScience. 2024 Apr 4;27(5):109662. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2024.109662. PMID: 38665205; PMCID: PMC11043889
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38665205/
Cook KM, De Asis-Cruz J, Andescavage N, Saulino P, Basu SK, du Plessis AJ, Limperopoulos C. Greater exposure to opioid pain medications in the NICU is associated with hyperconnectivity of the thalamus and cerebellum in infants born prematurely. Children’s National Hospital 14th Annual Research, Education and Innovation Week. Washington, D.C. April 2024.
Damera S, De Asis-Cruz J, Cook KM, Kapse K, Spoehr E, Basu SK, Andescavage N, Limperopoulos C. Regional homogeneity tracks sensory cortex dysmaturity and predicts future risk of autism in preterm infants. Children’s National Hospital 14th Annual Research, Education and Innovation Week. Washington, D.C. April 2024.
Cruz J, Kim JH, Cook KM, Teramoto H, Mastracchio CE, Kapse KJ, Andescavage N, Limperopoulos C. Associations between fetal hippocampal functional connectivity and maternal psychopathology. Children’s National Hospital 14th Annual Research, Education and Innovation Week. Washington, D.C. April 2024.
Cruz JD, Cook KM, Kim JH, Kasper ML, Saulino P, Andescavage N, Limperopoulos C. Fetal cortical thickness and structural brain connectivity changes associated with in utero exposure to SSRIs. Children’s National Hospital 14th Annual Research, Education and Innovation Week. Washington, D.C. April 2024.
2023 | November
Cook KM, De Asis-Cruz J, Kim JH, Basu SK, Andescavage N, Murnick J, Spoehr E, Liggett M, du Plessis AJ, Limperopoulos C. Experience of early-life pain in premature infants is associated with atypical cerebellar development and later neurodevelopmental deficits. BMC Med. 2023 Nov 14;21(1):435. doi: 10.1186/s12916-023-03141-w. PMID: 37957651
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37957651/
2023 | September
Cook KM, De Asis-Cruz J, Basu SK, Andescavage N, Murnick J, Spoehr E, du Plessis AJ, Limperopoulos C. Ex-utero third trimester developmental changes in functional brain network organization in infants born very and extremely preterm. Front Neurosci. 2023 Sep 1;17:1214080. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1214080. PMID: 37719160; PMCID: PMC10502339
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37719160/
2023 | March
Cook KM, De Asis-Cruz J, Lopez C, Quistorff J, Kapse K, Andersen N, Vezina G, Limperopoulos C. Robust sex differences in functional brain connectivity are present in utero. Cereb Cortex. 2023 Mar 10;33(6):2441-2454. doi: 10.1093/cercor/bhac218. PMID: 35641152; PMCID: PMC10016060
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35641152/
Recent presentations
Cook KM, Asis-Cruz JD, Kim JH, Spoehr E, Myers M, Basu SK, Andescavage N, du Plessis AJ, Limperopoulos C. Preterm Pain in the NICU Is Associated with Atypical Functional Brain Connectivity and Developmental Deficits at 18-Months. Platform presentation. Pediatric Academic Societies 2023. Washington, D.C. May 2023.
Cook KM, De Asis-Cruz J, Sitrin C, Barnett S, Krishnamurthy D, Kapse K, Andescavage N, Quistorff J, Lopez C, Limperopoulos C. Relative neighborhood disadvantage is associated with increased functional network segregation in fetal brains. Platform presentation. Pediatric Academic Societies 2022. Denver, CO. April 2022.
Cook KM, De Asis-Cruz J, Kim JH, Kapse K, Andescavage N, Basu S, Kapse K, du Plessis AJ, Limperopoulos C. Early exposure to the extra-uterine environment in premature infants is associated with altered functional brain connectivity compared to in-utero age-matched fetuses. Platform presentation. Pediatric Academic Societies 2022. Denver, CO. April 2022.