Dr. Rhonda Patrick is a scientist and health educator recognized for her leadership in nutrition, aging, and disease prevention. As the founder of FoundMyFitness, she shares expert, evidence-based insights on aging and disease prevention with her own unique brand of scientific rigor, engaging millions through her website, podcast, and YouTube channel.

Dr. Patrick earned her Ph.D. in Biomedical Science, conducting her graduate research at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital where she investigated the link between mitochondrial metabolism, apoptosis, and cancer. Her groundbreaking work discovered that a protein critical for cell survival has two distinct mitochondrial localizations with disparate functions, linking its anti-apoptotic role to a previously unrecognized role in mitochondrial respiration and maintenance of mitochondrial structure. Her dissertation findings were published in the 2012 issue of Nature Cell Biology.

She completed her postdoctoral fellowship at Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute with Dr. Bruce Ames, renowned developer of the Ames test for carcinogenicity. There, she investigated the effects of micronutrient (vitamin and mineral) inadequacies on metabolism, inflammation, DNA damage, and aging, and whether supplementation can reverse the damage. Additionally, she researched the role of vitamin D in brain function, behavior, and other physiological functions. In February 2014, she published a paper in the FASEB Journal on how vitamin D regulates serotonin synthesis and its relevance to autism.

Dr. Patrick has also conducted research on aging at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, where she investigated the role of insulin signaling in protein misfolding, commonly found in neurodegenerative diseases.

As an associate scientist and board member at the Fatty Acid Research Institute, she advances the understanding of omega-3 fatty acids in aging and health. Her broader research has been published in high-impact journals such as Nature Cell Biology, FASEB Journal, Experimental Gerontology, and Science.

She frequently engages the public on topics including:

• The genetic influences of dietary response
• The role of micronutrient deficiencies in diseases of aging
• Non-pharmacological approaches to depression and stress reduction
• The role of sleep and omega-3 fatty acids in human health and aging
• The paradoxical benefits derived from biological stressors such as heat, cold exposure, phytochemicals, and hormesis—a term encompassing the beneficial effects of exercise and other low-level stressors

It is Dr. Patrick’s goal to challenge the status quo and encourage the wider public to think about health and longevity using a proactive, preventative approach.

Publications

• Role of phosphatidylcholine-DHA in preventing APOE4-associated Alzheimer’s disease FASEB Journal
• Vitamin D and the Omega-3 Fatty Acids Control Serotonin Synthesis and Action, Part 2: Relevance for ADHD, Bipolar, Schizophrenia, and Impulsive Behavior  FASEB Journal
• Vitamin D Hormone Regulates Serotonin Synthesis. Part 1: Relevance for Autism FASEB Journal
• Delving Deeper: MCL-1′s Contribution to Normal and Cancer Biology Trends in Cell Biology
• Requirement for anti-apoptotic MCL-1 in the survival of BCR-ABL B-lineage acute lymphoblastic leukemia Blood
• Anti-Apoptotic MCL-1 Localizes to the Mitochondrial Matrix and Couples Mitochondrial Fusion to Respiration Nature Cell Biology
• Ubiquitin-Independent Degradation of Anti-Apoptotic MCL-1 Molecular and Cellular Biology
• Opposing Activities Protect Against Age-Onset Proteotoxicity Science