Caitlyn Pelletier is a Ph.D. candidate in Nutrition, working with Dr. Martha Field. Before coming to Cornell, she earned a B.A. from the University of Pennsylvania in Neuroscience and Nutrition Science. Caitlyn is interested in brain-nutrient interactions and their implications for human health. Now in Dr. Field's lab, Caitlyn is studying the role of folate-mediated one-carbon metabolism on Parkinson's Disease pathology, with a specific focus on mitochondrial function.

Caitlyn currently works in Dr. Martha Field’s lab, which studies mitochondrial folate-mediated one-carbon metabolism (FOCM). Her specific research focuses on the role of impaired FOCM on mitochondrial function in Parkinson’s disease. The laboratory uses several in vitro and in vivo model systems to study the mechanisms that underlie physiological outcomes associated with perturbed FOCM. She is interested in studying the role of folate metabolism in supporting mitochondrial DNA precursor synthesis, with a focus on understanding how folate nutrition affects mitochondrial DNA integrity and the pathogenesis of diseases such as Parkinson’s.

Google Scholar profile: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=n8SKF9EAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao. Geisler, C.E., Applebey, S.V., Chichura, K.S., Pelletier, C.M., Belser, D.L., Hu, J., Harris, E.P., Levine, C.B., Parent, M.B., Bangasser, D.A., Doyle, R.P., & Hayes, M.R. (2025). Sex differences in central endozepine expression and regulation of appetite. Physiology & Behavior. Geisler, C.E., Chichura, K.S., Orativskyi, O., Hu, J., Belser, D., Pelletier, C.M., Borner, T., Baumer-Harrision, C., De Jonghe, B.C., Crist, R.C., Reiner, B.C., Doyle, R.P., & Hayes, M.R. (2025). Hindbrain Octadecaneuropeptide Gliotransmission as a Therapeutic Target for Energy Balance Control Without Nausea/Emesis. Science Translational Medicine. Castillo, L.F., Pelletier, C.M., Heyden, K.E., & Field, M.S. (2025). New Insights into Folate-B12 Interactions. Annual Review of Nutrition. Geisler, C.E., Decarie-Spain, L., Loh, M.K.,Trumbauer, W., Gaisinsky, J., Klug, M.E., Pelletier, C.,Davis, J.F., Schmidt, H.D., Roitman, M.F., Kanoski, S., & Hayes, M.R. (2024). Amylin modulates a VTA to mPFC circuit to suppress feeding and impulsive food-directed behavior.

2023, B.A., Neuroscience and Nutritional Sciences, University of Pennsylvania