Paula Bickford, PhD

Dr. Paula C. Bickford is a leading neuroscientist whose research focuses on how aging affects the brain’s immune system and contributes to neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s and related dementias (ADRD). For more than 30 years, her work has explored how changes in microglia and immune signaling influence brain health and recovery after injury.

Her lab was among the first to study neuroinflammation in aging and neurodegeneration, publishing landmark findings in 2002. Today, her team uses cutting-edge proteomics and spatial genomics to uncover how microglia and T cells interact in ADRD and synucleinopathies. This research, supported by continuous funding from the National Institute on Aging for over 25 years, continues to expand understanding of how immune processes drive cognitive decline.

Dr. Bickford is also a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a dedicated mentor. She has trained more than 15 graduate students, 15 postdoctoral fellows, and over 50 undergraduate and postbaccalaureate researchers, many of whom have gone on to successful careers in academia, medicine, and industry.

At the University of South Florida, she served for 15 years as Graduate Coordinator for the Neuroscience concentration of the Medical Sciences PhD program and continues to mentor students at all levels. She currently serves as Co-Director of ERA PREP, Distinguished Professor in the USF Health Center of Excellence in Aging and Brain Repair, and Senior Career Scientist at the James A Haley Veterans Medical Center.