Molly Memel, Ph.D., ABBP-CN
Dr. Molly Memel is a board-certified clinical neuropsychologist who specializes in care for adults with various neurological conditions, including Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, stroke, frontotemporal dementia, epilepsy, and multiple sclerosis.
Dr. Memel earned her doctoral degree in clinical psychology with an emphasis in neuropsychology at the University of Arizona where she utilized multiple neuroimaging techniques to study the impact of age-related changes in brain structure and function on memory. She completed a neuropsychology focused internship at the Boston VA Healthcare system and a post-doctoral residency at the San Francisco VA and UCSF. Dr. Memel is currently a clinical neuropsychologist at the Ray Dolby Brain Health Center at CPMC in San Francisco and a research associate at the UCSF Memory and Aging Center.
Dr. Memel has published multiple peer-reviewed manuscripts and book chapters on cognition and aging (see below). Her primary research interest involves identifying ways in which physical activity confers positive effects on cognition, brain health, and emotional function during aging.
Dr. Memel also serves as an Adjunct Professor at the University of San Francisco (USF) where she teaches doctoral level courses in neuropsychological assessment, intellectual assessment, personality assessment, and other areas of cognition. As an adjunct faculty-member, she also serves on multiple neuropsychology-focused dissertation committees.
Memel M., Buchman A.S., Bennett D.A., Casaletto K. (2021). Relationship between objectively measured physical activity on neuropathology and cognitive outcomes in older adults: Resistance versus resilience? Alzheimers Dement 13(1):e12245. doi: 10.1002/dad2.12245. PMID: 34692982; PMCID: PMC8515358.
Memel, M., & Kramer, J.H. (2021). Frontotemporal Dementia in A Handbook of Geriatric Neuropsychology Practice Essentials: 2nd Edition. Routledge.
Memel, M., Lynch, K., Lafleche, G., & Verfaellie, M. (2021). Autobiographical recall of a deployment-related traumatic event in Veterans with PTSD. Memory.
Memel, M. Staffaroni, A.M., Cobigo, Y., Casaletto, K.B., Betcher, B.M., Yassa, M.A., Elahi, F.M., Wolf, A., Rosen, H.J. & Kramer, J. (2021). APOE moderates the effect of hippocampal blood flow on memory pattern separation in clinically normal older adults. Hippocampus.
Memel, M., Chen, D., & Kramer, J.H. (2020). Frontotemporal Dementia in the APA Handbook of Neuropsychology. American Psychological Association.
Casaletto K.B., Lindbergh C., Memel M., Staffaroni A., Elahi F., Weiner-Light S., You M., Fonseca C., Karydas A., Jacobs E., Dubal D.B., Yaffe K., Kramer J.H. (2020). Sexual dimorphism of physical activity on cognitive aging: Role of immune functioning. Brain, behavior, and immunity. 88: 699-710. doi: 10.1016/j.bbi.2020.05.014.
Memel, M., Wank, A. A., Ryan, L., & Grilli, M. D. (2019). The Relationship Between Episodic Detail Generation and Anterotemporal, Posteromedial, and Hippocampal White Matter Tracts. Cortex. http://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cortex.2019.10.010
Memel, M., Woolverton, C., Bourassa, K., & Glisky, E. (2018). Working memory predicts subsequent episodic memory decline during healthy cognitive aging: Evidence from a cross-lagged panel design. Aging, Neuropsychology, and Cognition.
Memel, M. & Ryan, L. (2018). Visual integration of objects and scenes increases recollection-based responding with differential age effects in MTL recruitment. Hippocampus. DOI:10.1002/hipo.23011
Memel, M. & Ryan, L. (2017). Visual integration enhances associative memory in young and Visual integration enhances associative memory equally for young and older adults without reducing hippocampal encoding activation. Neuropsychologia. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2017.04.031
Memel, M., Bourassa, K., Woolverton, C., & Sbarra, D. A. (2016). Body Mass and Physical Activity Uniquely Predict Change in Cognition for Aging Adults. Annals of Behavioral Medicine : A Publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine, 50(3), 397–408. http://doi.org/10.1007/s12160-015-9768-2
Bourassa, K. J., Memel, M., Woolverton, C., & Sbarra, D. A. (2015). Social participation predicts cognitive functioning in aging adults over time: comparisons with physical health, depression, and physical activity. Aging & Mental Health, 1–14. http://doi.org/10.1080/13607863.2015.1081152
Bourassa, K. J., Memel, M., Woolverton, C., & Sbarra, D. A. (2015). A dyadic approach to health, cognition, and quality of life in aging adults. Psychology and Aging, 30(2), 449-461. doi:10.1037/pag0000025