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Joel Gelernter, MD

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

Contact Information

Joel Gelernter, MD

Mailing Address

  • Psychiatry

    VA CT Healthcare Center S116A2, 950 Campbell Avenue

    West Haven, CT 06516

    United States

Appointments

Biography

Joel Gelernter, MD, is Foundations Fund Professor of Psychiatry and Professor of Genetics and Neurobiology; and Director, Division of Human Genetics (Psychiatry), at the Yale University School of Medicine.

The research focus of his laboratory is genetics of psychiatric illness – phenotypes including cocaine, opioid, nicotine, cannabis, and alcohol dependence, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and panic and other anxiety disorders. He also studies a range of related phenotypes, including pharmacogenomics; 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. Dr Gelernter’s laboratory published genomewide association studies (GWAS) for cocaine, cannabis, and opioid dependence, PTSD, alcohol dependence, nicotine dependence, and several related traits. All of these studies have resulted in the identification of novel risk loci.

Education & Training

  • Fellowship
    Psychiatric genetics, NIMH (1988)
  • MD
    SUNY Downstate Medical Center (1983)
  • BS
    Yale University, Music & Biology (1979)

Departments & Organizations