Joel Gelernter MD

Foundations Fund Professor of Psychiatry and Professor of Genetics and of Neurobiology; Director, Division of Human Genetics (Psychiatry)

Research Interests

Complex trait genetics; Psychiatric genetics; Population genetics; Substance dependence; Gene mapping

Research Summary

The research focus of my laboratory is genetics of psychiatric illness. We study a range of behavioral phenotypes including cocaine, opioid, nicotine, and alcohol dependence, panic and other anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, and affective disorders. In addition we study a range of intermediate phenotypes, such as neuroimaging measures; and basic issues in population and complex trait genetics.

The overall approach involves study of genetic polymorphism and sequence variation, on a molecular level, and from the perspective of population genetics. Current studies include NIDA and NIAAA-funded multicenter case/control association studies with the goal of identifying genes predisposing to cocaine, opioid, nicotine, and alcohol dependence (using genomewide association analysis and other approaches); an international drug dependence genetics training project in collaboration with Chulalongkorn Faculty of Medicine (Bangkok, Thailand); and studies of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Additional projects include functional studies of candidate genes, studies of within-locus linkage disequilibrium at candidate loci, studies of social phobia and related social-anxiety traits, and studies of several other phenotypes.

Selected Publications