Cynthia Mills Schumann
Cynthia Mills Schumann, PhD
Associate Professor and Director

Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences and the MIND Institute
University of California
USA

Education

B.S

June, 1998

University of California, San Diego, Neuroscience

Ph.D

May, 2005

University of California, Davis, Neuroscience

 

Biography

Dr. Schumann completed her undergraduate education at the University of California, San Diego, and then attended graduate school at the University of California, Davis, where she received a doctoral degree in Neuroscience. She conducted postdoctoral research at the University of California, San Diego, where she also moved to her first faculty position in the Department of Neurosciences. She joined the MIND Institute faculty in 2009 as assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences..

 

Research Interest

Dr. Schumann’s previous research experience includes postmortem studies of the autistic brain and magnetic resonance imaging studies of children with autism spectrum disorders. She is continuing her postmortem studies to investigate the neuroanatomy and neuropathology of autism, as well as leading program development for a brain tissue resource center at the MIND Institute.

Professional Activities:

Academic Positions
2015-present Associate Professor Department  of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences University of California, Davis School of Medicine
2010-present Director MIND Institute Brain Endowment for Autism Research Sciences (BEARS) Tissue Program, Autism BrainNet University of California, Davis School of Medicine
2009-2015 Assistant Professor Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences University of California, Davis School of Medicine
2007-2009 Research Scientist Department of Neurosciences University of California, San Diego School of Medicine
2006-2007 Adjunct Assistant Professor Department of Psychology California State University, San Marcos
2006-2008 Lecturer Department of Cognitive Science University of California, San Diego
University Service Positions
2015-present UC Davis School of Medicine Committee for Honors and Awards
2011-present University of California Human and Anatomical Specimen and Tissue Oversight Committee (HASTOC)
2013-2015

UC Davis Health System Biorepository Committee

2008-2009

UCSD School of Medicine Recruitment and Admissions Committee

 

Teaching
2011-present Neuroanatomy Laboratory Neuroscience graduate group Instructor on Record
2010-present Women in Science Freshman seminar Instructor on Record
2010-present Neuroanatomy UC Davis Autism Research Training Program course Faculty and annual Lecturer
2010-present Neuropathology of Autism Neurobiology of Brain Disorders, Neuroscience graduate group Guest lecturer
2010-present Neuroanatomy and Neuropathology of Autism Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Residents Lecture series Annual guest lecturer
2006-2007 Neuropsychology California State San Marcos Instructor on Record
2006-2008 Cognitive Neuroscience UC San Diego Department of Cognitive Neuroscience Instructor on Record

 

Publications

  1. B Stamova, BP Ander, N Barger, FR Sharp, and CM Schumann. Specific regional and age-related small-noncoding RNA expression patterns within superior temporal gyrus of typical human brains are less distinct in autism brains. Journal of Child Neurology. 2015 Dec;30(14):1930-46.
  2. JA Scott, N Goodrich-Hunsaker, K Kalish, A Lee, MR Hunsaker, CM Schumann, OT Carmichael, and TJ Simon. The hippocampi of children with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome have localized anterior alterations that predict severity of anxiety. Journal of Psychiatry and Neuroscience. 2015 Nov 24;41(1):140299.
  3. JA Scott, D Grayson, E Fletcher, A Lee, MD Bauman, CM Schumann, MH Buonocore, and DG Amaral. Longitudinal analysis of the developing rhesus monkey brain using magnetic resonance imaging: birth to adulthood. Brain Structure and Function. 2015 Jul 10 (epub ahead of print).
  4. BP Ander, N Barger, B Stamova, F Sharp, and CM Schumann. Atypical miRNA expression in temporal cortex associated with dysregulation of immune, cell cycle and other pathways in autism spectrum disorders. Molecular Autism. 2015 Jun 19;6:37.
  5. RK Weir, R Forghany, SE Smith, PH Patterson, AK McAllister, MD Bauman*, and CM Schumann. Preliminary evidence of neuropathology in nonhuman primates prenatally exposed to maternal immune activation. Brain, Behavior, and Immunity. 2015 Aug;48:139-46 (epub ahead of print). *co-senior author.
  6. Y Deng, NJ Goodrich-Hunsaker, M Cabaral, DG Amaral, MH Buonocore, D Harvey, K Kalish, OT Carmichael, CM Schumann, A Lee, RF Dougherty, LM Perry, BA Wandell, and TJ Simon. Disrupted fornix integrity in children with chromosome 22q11.2 deletion syndrome. Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging. 2015 Apr 30;232(1):106-14.
  7. N Barger, M. Sheley, and CM Schumann. Stereological study of pyramidal neurons in the human superior temporal sulcus from childhood to adulthood. Journal of Comparative Neurology. 2015, May 1;523(7):1054-72.
  8. JT Morgan, N Barger, DG Amaral, and CM Schumann. Comprehensive stereological study of amygdala cell populations in adolescents and adults with autism spectrum disorder. PLOS one. 2014, Oct 17;9(10):e110356.
  9. XB Liu and CM Schumann. Optimization of electron microscopy for human brains with long-term fixation and fixed-frozen sections. Acta Neuropathologica Communications. 2014 April 11;2(1):42.
  10. MR Hunsaker, JA Scott, MD Bauman, CM Schumann, and DG Amaral. Postnatal development of the hippocampus in the Rhesus macaque (Macaca mulatta): A longitudinal magnetic resonance imaging study. Hippocampus. 2014 March 20.
  11. MD Bauman, A Iosif, P Ashwood, D Braunschweig, A Lee, CM Schumann, J Van de Water, and DG Amaral. Maternal antibodies from mothers of children with autism alter brain growth and social behavior development in a rhesus monkey model. Translational Psychiatry. 2013 Jul 9;3.
  12. MD Bauman and CM Schumann. Is ‘bench-to-bedside’ realistic for autism? An integrative neuroscience approach. Neuropsychiatry. 2013;3(2):159-68.
  13. N Barger, L Stefanacci, CM Schumann, CC Sherwood, J Annese, JM Allman, JA Buckwalter, PR Hof, K Semendeferi. Neuronal populations in the basolateral nuclei of the amygdala are differentially increased in humans compared with apes: a stereological study. Journal of Comparative Neurology. 2012 Sep 1;520(13):3035-54.
  14. CM Schumann and CW Nordahl. Bridging the gap between MRI and postmortem research in autism. Brain Research, 2011 Mar 22;1380:175-86.
  15. CM Schumann; MD Bauman; and DG Amaral. Abnormal structure or function of the amygdala is a common component of neurodevelopmental disorders. Neuropsychologia. 2011 Mar;49(4):745-59
  16. CM Greco, CS Navarro, MR Hunsaker, I Maezawa, JF Shuler, F Tassone, M Delany, JW Au, RF Berman, LW Jin, C Schumann, PJ Hagerman, RJ Hagerman. Neuropathologic features in the hippocampus and cerebellum of three older men with fragile x syndrome. Molecular Autism. 2011 Feb 8;2(1):2.
  17. CM Schumann; C Bloss; C Carter Barnes; GW Wideman; RA Carper; N. Schork; C Lord; and E Courchesne.  Longitudinal magnetic resonance imaging study of cortical development through early childhood in autism. Journal of Neuroscience. 2010 Mar 24; 30 (12): 4419-27.
  18. JA Hamstra; CM Schumann; BL Goodlin-Jones; and DG Amaral. Comprehensive volumetric analysis of the cerebellum in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder. Autism Research. 2009 Oct; 2(5): 246-57.
  19. CM Schumann; C Carter Barnes; C Lord and E Courchesne. Amygdala enlargement in toddlers with autism related to severity of social and communication impairments. Biological Psychiatry. 2009 Nov. 66(10):942-9.
  20. JA Buckwalter; CM Schumann; and Gary Van Hoesen. Evidence for direct projections from the basal nucleus of the amygdala to retrosplenial cortex in the Macaque Monkey. Experimental Brain Research. 2008 Mar;186(1):47-57.
  21. DG Amaral; CM Schumann; and CW Nordahl. Neuroanatomy of autism. Trends in Neurosciences. 2008 Mar;31(3):137-45.
  22. CW Nordahl, D Dierker, I Mostafavi, CM Schumann, S Rivera, DG Amaral, and DC Van Essen. Cortical folding abnormalities in children with autism revealed by surface-based morphometry. Journal of Neuroscience. 2007 Oct 24;27(43):11725-35
  23. E Courchesne; K Pierce; CM Schumann; E. Redcay; JA Buckwalter; DP Kennedy; and J Morgan. Mapping early brain development in autism. Neuron. 2007 Oct 25;56(2):399-413.
  24. CM Schumann; J Hamstra; BL Goodlin-Jones; H Kwon; AL Reiss; and DG Amaral. Hippocampal size positively correlates with verbal IQ in male children. Hippocampus. 2007; 17(6):486-93.
  25. CM Schumann and DG Amaral. Stereological analysis of amygdala neuron number in autism. Journal of Neuroscience. 2006 Jul 19;26(29):7674-9.
  26. CM Schumann and DG Amaral. Stereological estimation of the number of neurons in the human amygdaloid complex. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 2005 Oct 31;491(4):320-9.
  27. CM Schumann; J Hamstra; BL Goodlin-Jones; LJ Lotspeich; H Kwon; MH Buonocore; CR Lammers; AL Reiss; and DG Amaral. The Amygdaloid complex is enlarged in children, but not adolescents, with autism; the hippocampus is enlarged at all ages. Journal of Neuroscience. 2004 Jul 14;24(28):6392-401.
  28. LJ Lotspeich; H Kwon; CM Schumann; SL Fryer; BL Goodlin-Jones; MH Buonocore; CR Lammers; DG Amaral; and AL Reiss. Investigation of neuroanatomical differences between autism and Asperger disorders. Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2004;61:291-298.
  29. DG Amaral; MD Bauman; and CM Schumann. The amygdala and autism: implications from nonhuman primate studies.  Genes Brain Behavior. 2003 Oct;2(5):295-302.
  30. CM Schumann; MH Buonocore; and DG Amaral. Magnetic resonance imaging of the postmortem autistic brain. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders.  2001 Dec; 31, No.6: 561-568.
  31. MB Weinger, AG Vredenburgh, CM Schumann, A Macario, KJ Williams, MJ Kalsher, B Smith, PC Truong, and A Kim. Quantitative description of the workload associated with airway management procedures.  J Clinical Anesthesia. 2000 Jun;12(4):273-82.