Holly Ingraham, PhD
Professor
Cellular Molecular Pharmacology
School of Medicine

holly.ingraham@ucsf.edu 415-476-3401

About Our Research: Please visit our website at https://ingrahamlab.ucsf.edu for an overview of our current research efforts in the basic science of "Hormones and Nerves in Female Physiology," which aims to improve women's health.

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About Me: Those who devote their lives to creative pursuits are often inspired by a singular event. Mine came from my great-grandfather, whose 1890 Bausch & Lomb microscope, abandoned in a closet after being shipped west from Worcester, Massachusetts, came into my possession when I was 10 years old. I picked it up and began exploring the biological world of Northern California, never to stop. However, sporadic events are insufficient to sustain a lifetime of curiosity and discovery. That support would come through the State of California via its amazing and accessible public education system, beginning at Revelle College at UCSD, and through the NIH, which has continuously supported my curiosity-based discovery research program for over 25 years. Unwavering support also comes from my family and mentors, who provide the personal strength and resiliency needed to overcome moments of disappointment, insecurity, and self-doubt. I thoroughly enjoy my life as a scientist and continue to be addicted to the rare experimental successes that are sprinkled among the many failures inherent in the scientific process.

About Mentoring: In partnership with San Francisco State University, I also direct the UCSF IRACDA Scholars Program, which aims to build our nation's biomedical workforce and faculty. Our efforts, along with generous funding from an NIGMS K12 grant and the UCSF School of Medicine, provide career development programming for a small cohort of postdoctoral fellows. Our local efforts today will make a national difference tomorrow.

Awards

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  • Distinguished Public Lecture Series – Fralin Medical Center, Virginia Tech, 2026
  • Grilione Seminar for College of Sciences, SJSU, 2026
  • Harris Memorial Lectureship – International Congress of Neuroendocrinology, JAPAN, 2026
  • Lois Taylor Ellison, MD Lecture – Medical College of Georgia, Augusta, GA, 2026
  • Presidential Public Lecture Series – Simons Foundation, NYC, 2026
  • Dolan Pritchett Honorary Lecture, Perlman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA, 2025
  • FASEB Excellence in Science Lifetime Achievement Award, 2024
  • Women’s History Month Symposium Lectureship, UC Davis, Davis, CA, 2024
  • Wu Lectureship, Institute for Human Nutrition, New York, NY, 2024
  • Edwin B. Astwood Award for Outstanding Research in Basic Science, Endocrine Society, 2023
  • Marlene A. DeLuca Endowed Lectureship, UCSF, San Diego, CA, 2023
  • Society of Endocrinology Trans-Atlantic Medalist and Lecture, Glasgow,, 2023
  • UCSF Lifetime Achievement in Mentoring Award, 2023
  • Women in Medicine and Science (WIMS) Lectureship, U. of Arizona, Tucson,, 2023
  • Distinguished Bert O’Malley Endowed Lectureship, BCM, Houston, TX, 2022
  • John and Margaret Faulkner Lectureship, University of Michigan, MI, 2022
  • Kendall-Hench Lectureship in Endo/Metabolism, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, 2022
  • Elected Member National Academy of Sciences (NAS), 2021
  • Herzstein Endowed Professor in Molecular Physiology, 2020
  • Senior Scholar Award, GCRLE Foundation, 2020
  • 42nd Steenbock Lectureship Award, U. of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, 2019
  • Elected Member American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAA&S), 2019
  • Joseph Larner Memorial Lectureship Award in Pharmacology, U. of Virginia, VA, 2018
  • Chancellor's Award Martin Luther King, Jr. (MLK) Leadership, 2017
  • Elected Fellow of American Association for Advancement of Science (AAAS), 2012
  • Brook Byers Basic Science Award, 2002
  • NIH-Independent Scientist Development Award, 1997-2002

Interests

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  • Female Physiology
  • Estrogen and Hormone Signaling in Metabolism
  • Sex-dependent neurocircuits
  • Age-Related Hormone Depletion
  • Brain-Bone and Brain-Gut Pathways

Websites

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Grants and Projects

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Publications (110)

Top publication keywords:
SumoylationTranscription FactorsSteroidogenic Factor 1IlexHormonesDNA-Binding ProteinsArcuate Nucleus of HypothalamusVentromedial Hypothalamic NucleusEstrogen Receptor alphaNephroblastoma Overexpressed ProteinGrowth InhibitorsEstrogensReceptors, Cytoplasmic and NuclearKisspeptinsTesticular Hormones

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