Kaitlin Casaletto, PhD, ABPP-CN is a scientist-practitioner neuropsychologist and Associate Professor at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center. Dr. Casaletto’s research program identifies factors that promote resilience in brain aging and prevent dementia. Her work has a particular lens towards sex differences and translational study designs that leverage biomarkers in human samples (plasma, cerebrospinal fluid, and brain tissue), neuropsychological phenotyping, and digital health approaches.
She directs the UCSF Hillblom Brain Aging Center, directs the Biomarkers Hub for the Ann S Bowers Women’s Brain Health Initiative (WBHI), and co-leads the UCSF Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center Genetics and Biomarker Core. Her work has been featured in the NYT, CNN, and The Guardian including a novel blood-based protein associated with exercise and brain rejuvenation, and identification of synaptic and inflammatory biomarkers as targets of exercise and cognitive resilience. Her work advanced our understanding in humans that “overactive” inflammation in the brains of women may represent a unique link to Alzheimer’s disease pathology that is not present in men. She is deeply committed to raising awareness and equity in our understanding of the female brain.
She obtained her PhD in Clinical Psychology from the UCSD/SDSU Joint Doctoral Program and her fellowship in Clinical Neuropsychology at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center where she went on to join faculty.