Dr. Kathryn Grive is an associate professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Brown University and Women & Infants Hospital. Dr. Grive conducts research into ovarian function because early loss of ovarian function not only leads to reduced fertility, but also results in accelerated aging of the whole body, including increased risks of neurodegenerative disease and cognitive decline. Better understanding of ovarian health is essential for preserving quality of life for half of the population.
| Aguilera J, Cortez K, Alonzo LCS, Aldana M, Aragon A, Gray C, Woodman-Sousa M, Grive KJ, Ray M, Larschan E. "Differential chromatin looping regulated by two GA-binding transcription factors creates an X-specific chromatin environment for dosage compensation." bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology, 2026. |
| De La Cruz, Payton, Woodman-Sousa, Morgan F., McAdams, Julia N., Sweeney, Ellia, Hakim, Lola, Aquino, Melanie Morales, Grive, Kathryn J. "Immune checkpoint inhibitor treatment does not impair ovarian or endocrine function in a mouse model of triple negative breast cancer." Frontiers in Reproductive Health, 2026. |
| Baker KM, McAdams JN, Woodman-Sousa MF, De La Cruz P, Grive KJ. "The effects of triclosan on ovarian reserve and fecundity in a mouse model." F&S science, vol. 7, no. 3, 2026, pp. 222-227. |
| Jansen C, McAdams J, Kim C, De La Cruz P, Salaverria A, DaSilva NA, Grive K, James NE. "Small molecule inhibition of ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase L1 alters cell metabolism proteins and exerts anti- or pro-tumorigenic effects contingent upon chemosensitivity status in high grade serous ovarian cancer." Frontiers in Pharmacology, vol. 16, 2025, pp. 1547164. |
| Matevossian K, Sauerbrun-Cutler MT, Konda S, Chen A, Steckler A, Ou J, McAdams JN, Snegovskikh E, Cram R, Chen JT, Go M, Stuckey A, Grive KJ. "The effects of BRCA1 and 2 mutations on ovarian reserve and aging." Fertility and Sterility, vol. 123, no. 5, 2025, pp. 899-901. |
| Valera H, Chen A, Grive KJ. "The Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Ovarian Axis, Ovarian Disorders, and Brain Aging." Endocrinology, vol. 166, no. 10, 2025. |
| Chaqour, Julienne, Ozcan, Meghan C.H., De La Cruz, Payton, Woodman-Sousa, Morgan F., McAdams, Julia N., Grive, Kathryn J. "Effects of maternal taxane chemotherapy exposure on daughters’ ovarian reserve and fertility potential." F&S Science, 2023. |
| Ozcan, Meghan C. H., Chaqour, Julienne, Woodman-Sousa, Morgan F., Grive, Kathryn J. "Exposure of Early Postnatal Oocytes to Chemotherapy Alters the Potential Ovarian Reserve, According to an Ex Vivo Mouse Model." Reproductive Medicine, vol. 4, no. 4, 2023, pp. 248-258. |
| Ozcan MCH, Cruz L, Woodman MF, Gundogan F, Grive KJ. "Fetal Ovarian Reserve: the Dynamic Changes in Ubiquitin C-Terminal Hydrolase L1." Reproductive sciences (Thousand Oaks, Calif.), 2023. |
| Pereira C, Arroyo-Martinez GA, Guo MZ, Downey MS, Kelly ER, Grive KJ, Mahadevaiah SK, Sims JR, Faca VM, Tsai C, Schiltz CJ, Wit N, Jacobs H, Clark NL, Freire R, Turner J, Lyndaker AM, Brieno-Enriquez MA, Cohen PE, Smolka MB, Weiss RS. "Multiple 9-1-1 complexes promote homolog synapsis, DSB repair, and ATR signaling during mammalian meiosis." eLife, vol. 11, 2022. |
| Woodman, Morgan F, Ozcan, Meghan C H, Gura, Megan A, De La Cruz, Payton, Gadson, Alexis K, Grive, Kathryn J. "The requirement of ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase L1 in mouse ovarian development and fertility." Biology of Reproduction, vol. 107, no. 2, 2022, pp. 500-513. |
| Grive KJ, Sauerbrun-Cutler MT. "Resveratrol improves granulosa cell activity through mitochondrial biogenesis." Fertility and Sterility, vol. 115, no. 4, 2021, pp. 909-910. |
| Grive KJ. "Pathways coordinating oocyte attrition and abundance during mammalian ovarian reserve establishment." Mol. Reprod. Dev., vol. 87, no. 8, 2020, pp. 843-856. |
| Grive KJ, Hu Y, Shu E, Grimson A, Elemento O, Grenier JK, Cohen PE. "Dynamic transcriptome profiles within spermatogonial and spermatocyte populations during postnatal testis maturation revealed by single-cell sequencing." PLOS Genetics, vol. 15, no. 3, 2019, pp. e1007810. |
| Grive KJ, Gustafson EA, Seymour KA, Baddoo M, Schorl C, Golnoski K, Rajkovic A, Brodsky AS, Freiman RN. "TAF4b Regulates Oocyte-Specific Genes Essential for Meiosis." PLOS Genetics, vol. 12, no. 6, 2016, pp. e1006128. |
| Grive KJ, Freiman RN. "The developmental origins of the mammalian ovarian reserve." Development, vol. 142, no. 15, 2015, pp. 2554-63. |
| Grive KJ, Seymour KA, Mehta R, Freiman RN. "TAF4b promotes mouse primordial follicle assembly and oocyte survival." Developmental Biology, vol. 392, no. 1, 2014, pp. 42-51. |
| Mellone BG, Grive KJ, Shteyn V, Bowers SR, Oderberg I, Karpen GH. "Assembly of Drosophila centromeric chromatin proteins during mitosis." PLOS Genetics, vol. 7, no. 5, 2011, pp. e1002068. |
Ovarian function is necessary for fertility, but also for female systemic health and longevity. Premature loss of ovarian function not only leads to reduced fertility, but also results accelerated pathological aging of the whole body, including increased risks of neurodegenerative disease and cognitive decline. By better understanding of ovarian health for all people, regardless of fertility goals, is essential for preserving quality of life for half of the population.
The Grive Lab aims to better understand the role of the ovary in overall health in the following projects:
1. Study of the regulation and protection of the mammalian ovarian reserve, with a focus on oocyte quality and its relationship to ovarian aging and neurological health.
We have identified a critical regulator of ovarian function, Ubiquitin C-Terminal Hydrolase L1 (UCHL1) which is required for healthy fertility and reproductive lifespan in the mouse. We have also demonstrated analogous protein expression patterns in humans, suggesting that our mouse models are suitable to understand how this protein functions in human reproductive health as well.
We have multiple transgenic mouse models, including a global knockout, and oocyte-specific knockout, and a line which tags specifically oocyte-specific UCHL1, to better understand its function. Currently, we are exploring how oocyte-specific loss of UCHL1 affects oocyte quality, and how this perturbed oocyte quality affects susceptibility to neurodegenerative disease and endocrine dysfunction.
2. Discovery of factors influencing human oocyte quality and abundance.
In addition to studying proteins of interest, we are also investigating novel regulators of oocyte quality, including inflammatory conditions such as endometriosis, as well as genetic mutations such as carriers status for mutations in cancer-predisposing genes BRCA1 and BRCA2.
Using our position as a hospital-based laboratory, we work closely with clinicians in Women's Oncology, Reproductive Endocrinology and Infertility, and Pathology to obtain patients specimens that allow us to test how these conditions impact oxidative stress and DNA damage in oocytes, ultimately resulting in impaired oocyte quality.
3. Investigation of fertility effects resulting from chemotherapy exposure during treatment for malignancy.
Finally, the Grive lab is interested in understanding the diverse ovarian effects of cancer therapies, including conventional chemotherapies, emerging immunotherapies, as well as other novel targeted therapies. By understanding how these agents impact ovarian function, we can better understand if some should be preferentially utilized in reproductive age patients, and we may also elucidate mechanisms that can be targeted for ovarian protection.
Previously, we have demonstrated that while conventional chemotherapies have varied, but significant, effects on ovarian health during many different windows of exposure, we have excitingly revealed that immune checkpoint inhibitors (such as anti-PD-1 therapy, which is standard-of-care in specific breast cancer populations) demonstrates no detrimental effects on ovarian function. Today, we are exploring the effects of Cyclin Dependent Kinase (CDK) 4 & 6 Inhibitors (CDKI; also used in breast cancer treatment) on ovarian function and fertility in mouse models as well as in treated patients.
NIH 1R01HD111322-01A1 - "Requirement for Ubiquitin C-Terminal Hydrolase function in mammalian ovarian health and fertility"
| Year | Degree | Institution |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | PhD | Brown University |
| 2013 | MA | Brown University |
| 2009 | BS | University of Connecticut |
| Postdoctoral Research Fellow | Cornell University, Reproductive Biology | 2015-2019 | Ithaca, New York, United States |
- 2025 Society for the Study of Reproduction "Rising Star" (2025)
- Hartwell Postdoctoral Fellowship (2015)
- Barry Jay Rosen Memorial Award (2015)
- Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (2013)
- Sidney Frank Fellowship (2010)
| Translational Research Scholar. Women and Infants, 2019- |
