Irina Esterlis, PhD
Professor of PsychiatryCards
About
Titles
Professor of Psychiatry
Director, Molecular Imaging Program, NCPTSD, VA; Director, Mood, Anxiety, and Cognitive Sciences Division
Biography
Irina Esterlis is a clinical neuropsychologist and neuroreceptor imager with extensive training in the application of SPECT and PET to the study of mood, trauma, suicide, and comorbid disorders. Dr. Esterlis has developed two novel paradigms to interrogate both the acetylcholine and glutamatergic systems in vivo in human. Her lab was also the first to show ketamine-induced changes in human volunteers in vivo. She has received awards from Society of Nuclear Medicine, American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, Society for Biological Psychiatry, and American Association for the Advancement of Science. Dr. Esterlis' current work includes the study of the metabotropic glutamatergic receptor involvement in bipolar depression and suicide, and synaptic alterations associated with depression, aging, and suicidality. The lab has expanded to add in vivo preclinical work to elucidate human findings.
Appointments
Psychiatry
ProfessorPrimaryDepartment of Psychology
Associate Professor on TermSecondaryRadiology & Biomedical Imaging
Associate Professor on TermSecondary
Other Departments & Organizations
- Center for Brain & Mind Health
- Center for Nicotine and Tobacco Use Research at Yale (CENTURY)
- Department of Psychology
- Division of Women's Behavioral Health Research
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program
- MR Core
- Neuroscience Research Training Program (NRTP)
- Neuroscience Track
- PET Core
- Psychiatric Symptoms in Neurology Research Program
- Psychiatry
- Psychology Section
- Radiology & Biomedical Imaging
- Translational Brain Imaging Program
- VA National Center for PTSD
- WHRY Pilot Project Program Investigators
- Women's Health Research at Yale
- Wu Tsai Institute
- Yale Biomedical Imaging Institute
- Yale Combined Program in the Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS)
- Yale Tobacco Center of Regulatory Science
- Yale Ventures
Education & Training
- PhD
- University of Connecticut (2005)
- MA
- University of Connecticut (2003)
- BA
- SUNY Buffalo (1999)
Research
Overview
Examination of the beta2-nAChR system in bipolar depression and relevance to the persistent tobacco smoking.
Imaging glutamatergic system in depression via PET and MRS to determine role of glutamate and mGluR5 in depression and associated cognitive difficulties.
Imaging ACh changes in the brain in living humans.
Medical Research Interests
News
News
- October 23, 2024Source: The Primary Care Companion
Psychological Resilience of Mental Health Workers During the Russia-Ukraine War: Implications for Clinical Interventions
- August 23, 2024
Microglia-Mediated Neuroimmune Suppression in PTSD Is Associated With Anhedonia
- November 28, 2023Source: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Perspective
Ketamine and the Neurobiology of Depression: Toward Next-generation Rapid-acting Antidepressant Treatments
- September 19, 2023
Investigators Launch Study Aimed at Accelerating Understanding of Bipolar Disorder
Get In Touch
Contacts
Yale University
40 Temple St, Suite 7C
New Haven, Connecticut 06510
United States