Our Faculty

Mady Hornig, MD, MA, is Associate Professor of Epidemiology and Director of Translational Research in the Jerome L. and Dawn Greene Infectious Disease Laboratory at the Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University. A physician-scientist, she is widely recognized for her animal model and clinical research on the role of microbial, immune, and toxicologic factors in neuropsychiatric disorders, including autism, schizophrenia, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and mood disorders. Her work integrates data from animal models and epidemiologic studies to understand the mechanisms by which environmental factors, including viruses, bacteria, and toxins, or common host responses to these agents during brain maturation, may act as triggers or amplifying factors in the pathogenesis of some neuropsychiatric conditions. Findings from animal models of immune-mediated neurodevelopmental damage are employed to sharpen the focus of investigations in human cohorts, creating the basis for translation into novel biomarkers and intervention strategies; and hypotheses generated from epidemiologic studies are rigorously tested in animal models. In 2004, Dr. Hornig presented to the Institute of Medicine Immunization Safety Review Committee and testified twice before congressional subcommittees regarding the role of infections and toxins in autism pathogenesis. She leads a project on immune and neuroendocrine factors in West Nile virus encephalitis within the Northeast Biodefense Center, an NIAID regional center of excellence in biodefense and emerging infectious diseases, where she is a member of the Core Oversight Committee and the Governing Council. She was recently elected to the President?s Council of Cornell Women.

MD, Medical College of Pennsylvania, 1988

MA, New School for Social Research, 1983

BA, Cornell University, 1978

Mailman School Affiliations:

• Center for Infection and Immunity 

Additional Affiliations:

• Member, American Psychiatric Association
• Fellow, American Psychopathological Association
• Member, International Society of NeuroVirology
• Associate Member, American Society for Virology

• College Scholar, Cornell University, 1974-1978
• American Medical Association (AMA) Rock Sleyster Memorial Scholar, 1987-1988
• Association for Academic Psychiatry/Mead Johnson Fellow in Academic Psychiatry, 1992
• NARSAD Young Investigator Award, 1993-1995
• President?s Council of Cornell Women, 2004-2007

Gene-Environment Interactions in an Autism Birth Cohort
This project will describe the developmental trajectory of children with autism spectrum disorders, identify risk factors associated with the development of these disorders, and elucidate biologic markers (genetic, biochemical) present before or at birth that may help to predict children at risk for the development of these disorders.

Countries: Norway