Rising Researcher and Advocate: Dr. Bonnie Lee Advancing Women’s Brain Health

Dr. Bonnie Lee, Lead of Research and Advocacy at the Women’s Health Research Cluster and Postdoctoral Fellow at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, is emerging as a powerful voice in women’s brain health and Alzheimer’s disease research. Her work is helping to uncover critical sex-specific factors that shape how neurodegenerative diseases develop and progress. Dr. Lee’s contributions were previously recognized with the Sex and Gender PIA Publication of the Year Award for her work on the “parity paradox,” which highlights the differential effects on neuroplasticity and inflammation by APOE4 genotype in middle age. 

Focusing on the disproportionate burden of Alzheimer’s disease in females, Dr. Lee investigates how genetic risk, particularly the APOE 4 allele, interacts with female-specific life experiences such as pregnancy and menopause. Her research explores how these factors influence cognitive function, neuroplasticity, and neuroinflammation in midlife, drawing on animal models to better understand disease risk and progression.

Beyond her research, Dr. Lee is a dedicated leader and advocate for integrating sex and gender considerations into health research. Through her roles with the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and its Institute of Gender and Health, she has championed initiatives that promote sex- and gender-based analysis (SGBA+), contributed to educational programming, and fostered mentorship opportunities for emerging researchers.

Dr. Lee’s work is in line with the mission of the WHRC, emphasizing the importance of prioritizing women’s health research and ensuring that sex-specific insights inform the future of Alzheimer’s disease prevention and care. To learn more about her research, visit her lab’s website or explore her cluster profile.