Roheeni Saxena

Roheeni Saxena is a Ph.D. candidate on the Toxicology Track in Columbia University’s Department of Environmental Health Sciences. She previously earned a B.A. from Wellesley College, an M.P.H. from Columbia University’s Department of Sociomedical Sciences, and a CPH certification from the National Board of Public Health Examiners. After her undergraduate work, Saxena trained at the National Institute of Mental Health’s Laboratory of Behavioral Neuroscience under Dr. Jacqueline Crawley, and at Harvard’s Behavioral Genetics Laboratory. Prior to beginning her doctoral studies, Saxena served as Associate Director of Educational Programs at Columbia’s Mailman School of Public Health where she contributed to the design and implementation of its novel integrated M.P.H. program. Currently, she works under Dr. Mary Gamble with a research focus on the effects of nutritional deficiencies and arsenic exposures on cognitive outcomes in children and adolescents.

Certifications

Certified in Public Health (CPH) by the National Board of Public Health Examiners

Selected Publications

  • A. Bozack,* R.Saxena,* and M.V. Gamble. Nutritional Influences on One-Carbon Metabolism: Effects on Arsenic Methylation and Toxicity. Annual Review of Nutrition, May 2018. * These authors contributed equally.
  • G.A.Wasserman, X.Liu, F.Parvez, Y.Chen, P.Factor-Litvak, N.J.LoIacono, D.Levy, H.Shahriar, M.N. Uddin, T.Islam, A.Lomax, R.Saxena, E.A.Gibson, M.A.Kioumourtzoglou, O.Balac, T.Sanchez, J.K. Kline, D.Santiago, T.Ellis, A.van Geen, J.H.Graziano. Water Arsenic Exposure and Intellectual Function in Adolescence in Araihazar, Bangladesh. Environment International. September 2018.
  • M.D. Begg, L.P.Fried, J.W.Glover, M.Delva, M.R.Wiggin, L.Hooper, R.Saxena, H.de Pinho, E.Slomin, J.R.Walker, and S.Galea. Measuring the Impact of Curricular Change: Short-Term Results from the New Columbia Core Curriculum. American Journal of Public Health, 104:S4, 2015.
  • M.Wöhr, J.L.Silverman, M.L.Scattoni, S.M.Turner, M.J.Harris, R.Saxena, and J.N. Crawley. Developmental delays and reduced pup ultrasonic vocalizations but normal sociability in mice lacking the postsynaptic cell adhesion protein neuroligin2. Behavioral brain research;  251:50-64, 2013.
  • M.Yang, O.Bozdagi, M.L.Scattoni, M.Wohr, F.Roullet, A.Katz, D.Abrams, D.Kalikhman, H.Simon, L.Woldeyohannes, J.Zhang, M.Harris, R.Saxena, J.Silverman, J.Buxbaum, and J.N.Crawley. Reduced excitatory neurotransmission and mild Autism-Relevant phenotypes in adolescent shank3 null mutant mice. J. of Neuroscience; 32(19), 6525-6541, 2012.
  • J.L.Silverman, S.M.Turner, C.L.Barkan, S.S.Tolu, R.Saxena, A.Y.Hung, M.Sheng, J.N. Crawley. Sociability and Motor Functions in Shank1 Mutant Mice. Brain Research, 2010.
  • O.Bozdagi, T.Sakurai, D.Papapetrou, X.Wang, D.L.Dickstein, N.Takahashi, Y.Kajiwara, M.Yang, A.M.Katz, M.L.Scattoni, M.J.Harris, R.Saxena, J.L.Silverman, J.N. Crawley, Q.Zhou, P.R.Hof, J.D.Buxbaum. Haploinsufficiency of the autism-associated Shank3 gene leads to deficits in synaptic function, social interaction, and social communication. Molecular Autism, 1:15, 2010.

Selected Publications: Scientific Abstracts

  • M.Yang, M.Scattoni, M.J.Harris, A.M.Katz, R.Saxena, S.M.Turner, L.M.Woldeyohannes, F.I.Roullet, J.L.Silverman, O.Bozdagi, T.Sakurai, J.D.Buxbaum, J.N.Crawley. 2010. “Selective deficits in social interactions in Shank3 mutant mice.” Society for Neuroscience, San Francisco CA, October 2010.


Selected Presentations

  • R.Saxena. Nutritional Influences on Blood Arsenic & Cognitive Function in Children. 14th Annual Meeting of Environmental Health Scholars. 2017; Washington, DC.

Selected Honors

  • Lead Teaching Fellow, Columbia’s Center for Teaching and Learning, Awarded 2017-2018.
  • APA Environmental Health Scholar, Academic Pediatric Association, Awarded 2017.
  • Best of the Festival Commendation for Original One-Act “Girl Seeking Safety”, The Tank, Awarded 2013.
  • Pushcart Prize Nominee, Pushcart Press, Awarded 2011.
  • Intramural Research Training Award Recipient, National Institutes of Health, Awarded 2009 – 2010.
  • Howard Hughes Medical Institute Summer Research Grant, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Awarded 2007.
  • New Leaders Program Fellow, Center for Progressive Leadership, Washington DC, Awarded 2006.
  • First-Year Distinction, Wellesley College, Wellesley MA, Awarded 2005.