August 2012  

Expression of a single gene dramatically decreases synaptic connections between brain cells. Yale scientists believe this may explain why people suffering from chronic stress and depression suffer loss of brain volume.

Yale team discovers how stress and depression can shrink
the brain

Major depression or chronic stress can cause the loss of brain volume, a condition that contributes to both emotional and cognitive impairment. Now a team of researchers led by Yale scientists has discovered one reason why this occurs - a single genetic switch that triggers loss of brain connections in humans and depression in animal models. Ronald Duman, PhD, the Elizabeth Mears and House Jameson Professor of Psychiatry, is senior author. Read more / View the study 

Yale Psychiatry Department welcomes new faculty,
announces promotions  

Please join the Yale Department of Psychiatry in congratulating promoted faculty and welcoming its newest Assistant Professors, Associate Research Scientists, Instructors, and Clinicians. Read more 

Behavioral test shows promise in predicting future problems with alcohol

By administering a simple behavioral test, researchers were able to predict which mice would later exhibit alcoholism-related behaviors such as the inability to stop seeking alcohol and a tendency to relapse, scientists report in the journal Nature Neuroscience. Jane Taylor, PhD, Charles B.G. Murphy Professor of Psychiatry and professor of psychology, is senior author of the study. Read more / View the study 

The first genome-wide studies looking at the potential association of particular genes with obsessive-compulsive disorder and Tourette's syndrome were published in two reports in the Aug. 14 issue of Molecular Psychiatry. A number of Yale Psychiatry faculty, including James Leckman, MD, professor of psychiatry, are contributing authors. Read more / Tourette's syndrome study / OCD Study 

A recent study examines the neural mechanisms of impaired decision-making in hoarding disorder compared with patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder and healthy control subjects. David Tolin, PhD, adjunct associate professor of psychiatry, is lead author; Godfrey Pearlson, MD, professor of psychiatry, is senior author. Read more / View the study 

Patients with bipolar disorder are around twice as likely to be non-righthanded as mentally healthy individuals, study results show. Furthermore, this difference in non-righthandedness rates between bipolar disorder patients and those without the mood disorder is even more pronounced among adolescents. Hilary Blumberg, MD, professor of psychiatry, is senior author. Read more / View the study 

A recent study published in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise shows that people with higher levels of chronic mental stress take longer to recover their strength after workouts. Matthew Stults-Kolehmainen, PhD, a postdoctoral associate at the Yale Stress Center, is the study's lead author. Read more / View the study 

A comparison of the influence of risk factors among college undergraduates found that both an early age at first drink as well as a quick progression from the first drink to drinking to intoxication independently predicted later problems. Meghan Rabbitt Morean, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow in the department of psychiatry at Yale is lead author of the study. Read more / View the study 

Seven Yale Department of Psychiatry investigators have received NARSAD Young Investigator Grants from the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation. The grants are among $11.9 million in new funding intended to strengthen the foundation's investment in the most promising ideas to lead to breakthroughs in understanding and treating mental illness. Read more 

Following a national search, the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services announced the appointment of Charles Dike, MD, MPH as Director of the Whiting Forensic Division of Connecticut Valley Hospital. Dr. Dike is an assistant professor of psychiatry at Yale in the department's Law & Psychiatry Division. Read more 

The Law and Psychiatry Division of the Department of Psychiatry reaches far and wide into city, state, and federal systems of justice and mental health care. Howard Zonana, MD, the Division's longtime director, talks about the ins and outs of forensic psychiatry including its challenges and ethical dilemmas. Read more 

Daryn David, PhD, a NIMH Research Fellow in Functional Disability Interventions at the Yale Program for Recovery and Community Health, has been awarded a competitive Science & Technology Policy Fellowship through the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Dr. David will serve her fellowship year in the Office of the Director, Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research at the National Institutes of Health. Read more 

Cedarhurst School, a junior and senior high school for students with serious social, emotional, and behavioral difficulties that is operated by Yale's Department of Psychiatry, was re-accredited through June 30, 2017 with commendations for its leadership, staff, and curriculum. Read more  

90%: That's how many patients in public mental health settings are estimated to be trauma survivors. In addition, studies have shown that people who work in the mental health field have experienced trauma at higher-than-average rates. Recognizing widespread benefits for clients and staff at every level of the organization, Connecticut Mental Health Center seeks to implement best practices in the growing field of Trauma-Informed Care. Read more 

The Serenity Project brings original artwork to the walls of the Substance Abuse Treatment Unit (SATU). SATU, a clinical site within the Department of Psychiatry's training program in addictions, collaborated with the Art Department at Southern Connecticut State University on this exhibition designed to promote healing, recovery, and well-being. Read more 

Alumni Spotlight 

A 2011 graduate of Yale's psychiatry residency, Jessica Jasjit Kaur Chaudhary, MD, shares her experience as a psychiatrist working at the U.S. State Department and encourages trainees to consider non-traditional experiences as they navigate their careers and find their niche. Read more 

Wayne K. Goodman, MD, Professor and Chair of the Department of Psychiatry at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, has been chosen to receive the 2012 Outstanding Career Achievement Award from the International OCD (Obsessive Compulsive Disorder) Foundation. Dr. Goodman completed his residency and a fellowship in psychiatry at Yale University, where he remained a faculty member until 1993. Read more 

New volume on food addiction 

Mark S. Gold, MD, who completed his psychiatry residency at Yale, is co-author of Food and Addiction: A Comprehensive Handbook, based on the science and evidence linking overeating and food preferences to basic and clinical neuroscience. Dr. Gold is the Donald Dizney Eminent Scholar, Distinguished Professor and Chair of Psychiatry at University of Florida. He began his work on the relationship between food and drug addictions while at Yale. A number of current Yale Psychiatry faculty also contributed chapters to the volume. Read more 

Alumni, please submit your news and updates to psychiatry@yale.edu.

In Memoriam

Marjorie Tapscott Dreyfus passed away on July 25, 2012 after a long illness. Upon graduating from Purdue University in 1954, Marjorie moved with her then husband Russell Dreyfus, to New Haven, Connecticut. She received her Master of Social Work from the University of Connecticut in 1974, establishing a private practice for over 30 years and serving as a Clinical Instructor (1974-1978) and Assistant Clinical Professor in Social Work (1978-2007) at Yale's School of Medicine. Read more 

Upcoming Psychiatry Grand Rounds

Friday, September 7, 2012; 10:15-11:45 am

Motivation and Reward Processing in Schizophrenia: Neural and Psychological Mechanisms

Deanna Barch, PhD, Professor of Psychology and Radiology, Washington University at St. Louis

CMHC Auditorium, 34 Park St 

Details / Download to Your Calendar 

Friday, September 14, 2012; 10:15-11:45 am

Delusions and the Brain: Learning About Odd Beliefs Through Cognitive Neuroscience

Philip Corlett, PhD, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine

CMHC Auditorium, 34 Park St 

Details / Download to Your Calendar 

Friday, September 21, 2012; 10:15-11:45 am

Neil Finn Presents His Ideas on Songwriting and Creativity

Neil Finn, New Zealand recording artist of Crowded House, The Finn Brothers, 7 Worlds Collide, Pajama Club, and Split Enz

CMHC Auditorium, 34 Park St 

Details / Download to Your Calendar 

Friday, September 28, 2012; 10:15-11:45 am

Mothering from the Inside Out: A Parenting Program for At-Risk Mothers Based on Attachment Theory

Nancy Suchman, PhD, Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Yale School Of Medicine

CMHC Auditorium, 34 Park St

Details / Download to Your Calendar