Maria A. Briscione, Ph.D.

Maria A. Briscione, Ph.D., is a student associate in Sterne Kessler’s Biotechnology & Chemical Practice Group. Maria primarily assists in the preparation and prosecution of U.S. and foreign patent applications. Her technical areas of expertise include neuroscience, molecular biology, pharmacology, biochemistry, genetics, and proteomics.

Maria earned her Ph.D. in neuroscience from Emory University. There, she designed and developed physiological testing procedures to investigate genetic and environmental risk factors for developing posttraumatic stress disorder. Her dissertation focused on identifying abnormal intracellular signaling mechanisms in a mouse model of dystonia, a neurological movement disorder.

Prior to joining the firm, Maria worked as a patent agent in a law firm in Washington, D.C. She earned her B.S. in biochemistry from American University.

Technical Publications

• Roman KM, Briscione MA, Donsante Y, Ingram J, Fan X, Bernhard D, Campbell SA, Downs AM, Gutman D, Sardar TA, Bonno SQ, Sutcliffe DJ, Jinnah HA, Hess EJ. Striatal subregion-selective dysregulated dopamine receptor-mediated intracellular signaling in a model of DOPA-responsive dystonia. Neuroscience. 2023 May 1;517:37-49.
• Briscione MA, Dinasarapu AR, Bagchi P, Donsante Y, Downs AM, Fan X, Hoehner J, Jinnah HA, Hess E. Differential expression of striatal proteins in a mouse model of DOPA-responsive dystonia reveals shared mechanisms among dystonic disorders. Mol. Genet. Metab, 2021; 133(4):352-361.
• Lakshman M, Murphy L, Mekawi Y, Carter S, Briscione M, Bradley B, Tone EB, Norrholm SD, Jovanovic T, Powers A. Attention bias toward threat in African American children exposed to early life trauma. Behav Brain Res, 2020 Apr 6;383:112513.
• Mekawi Y, Murphy L, Munoz A, Briscione M, Tone EB, Norrholm SD, Jovanovic T, Bradley B, Powers A. The role of negative affect in the association between attention bias to threat and posttraumatic stress: An eye-tracking study. Psychiatry Res, 2019; doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2019.112674.
• Powers A, Fani N, Murphy L, Briscione M, Bradley B, Tone EB, Norrholm SD, Jovanovic T. Attention bias toward threatening faces in women with PTSD: eye tracking correlates by symptom cluster. Eur J Psychotraumatol, 2019; 10(1):1568133.
• Wingo AP, Briscione M, Norrholm SD, Jovanovic T, McCullough SA, Skelton K, Bradley-Davino B. Psychological resilience is associated with more intact social functioning in veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder and depression. Psychiatry Res, 2017; 249:206-211.
• Wingo AP, Almli LM, Stevens JS, Jovanovic T, Wingo TS, Tharp G, Li Y, Lori A, Briscione MA, Jin P, Binder EB, Bradley B, Gibson G, Ressler KJ. Genome-wide association study of positive emotion identifies a genetic variant and a role for microRNAs. Mol. Psychiatry, 2017; 22:774-783.
• Briscione MA, Michopoulos V, Jovanovic T, Norrholm SD. Neuroendocrine underpinnings of increased risk for posttraumatic stress disorder in women. Vitam Horm, 2016; 103:53-83.
• Norrholm SD, Jovanovic T, Briscione MA, Anderson KM, Kwon CK, Warren VT, Bosshardt L, Bradley B. Generalization of fear-potentiated startle in the presence of auditory cues: a parametric analysis. Front Behav Neurosci, 2014; 8:361.
• Briscione MA, Jovanovic T, Norrholm SD. Conditioned fear associated phenotypes as robust, translational indices of trauma-, stressor-, and anxiety-related behaviors. Front Psychiatry, 2014; 5:88.
• Hartings M, Benjamin N, Briere F, Briscione MA, Choudary O, Fisher TL, Flynn L, Harper M, Khamis N, Koenigsknecht C, Lazor K, Moss S, Robbins E, Schultz S, Yaman S, Haverhals LM, Trulove PC, DeLong HC, Miller AE, Fox DM. Concurrent zero-dimensional and one-dimensional biomineralization of gold from a solution of Au3+ and bovine serum albumin. Science and Technology of Advanced Materials, 2013; 14(6): 065004.
• Merluzzi AP, Hurwitz ZE, Briscione MA, Cobuzzi JL, Wetzell B, Rice KC, Riley AL. Age-dependent MDPV-induced taste aversions and thermoregulation in adolescent and adult rats. Dev Psychobiol, 2013; 56:943-54.
• Briscione MA, Serafine KM, Merluzzi AP, Rice KC, Riley AL. The effects of 5-HT3 receptor antagonism on cocaine-induced conditioned taste aversions. Pharmacol Biochem Behav, 2013; 105:112-117.
• Serafine KM, Briscione MA, Rice KC, Riley AL. Dopamine mediates cocaine-induced conditioned taste aversions as demonstrated with cross-drug preexposure to GBR 12909. Pharmacol Biochem Behav, 2012; 102:269-274.
• Serafine KM, Briscione MA, Riley AL. The effects of haloperidol on cocaine-induced conditioned taste aversions. Physiol Behav, 2012; 105:1161-1167.