LHM Lab

Yale LHM lab is an interdisciplinary laboratory for translational research of stress and addiction. The mission of the LHM lab is to understand the neurobiological mechanisms of and develop effective treatment for stress and addiction related disorders.

To bridge the gap between neuroscience and clinical research, LHM conducts interdisciplinary research using novel approaches such as simultaneous collection of fMRI and peripheral measures (ECG, hormones), which allows us to understand the relationships between the brain, autonomic nervous system, and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. In addition, LHM utilizes intensive longitudinal methods including daily monitoring via smartphone app to assess daily stress and addiction related behaviors in a real-life setting.

LHM has two sections of laboratory facilities located at large research centers: (1) clinical research section located at Yale Stress Center and (2) neuroimaging section located at Yale Magnetic Resonance Research Center (MRRC).

LHM aims to discover novel neurobiological markers to identify those who are vulnerable to specific stress and addiction related illnesses, develop personalized intervention strategies and improve clinical outcomes.

One of our objectives is to take multidisciplinary initiatives bridging neuroscience and clinical research. LHM brings together interdisciplinary researchers for translational science and facilitates inter-departmental collaborations among Psychiatry, Radiology, Endocrinology, and Computer Science. In particular, LHM has established long-term collaborations with Yale Stress Center, MRRC and Yale Endocrinology. This collaborative environment provides a wealth of intellectual and material resources and promotes interactions between scholars with diverse expertise for the scientific success of translational research on stress and addiction.