Lynnette Averill, PhD, Associate Research Scientist in Psychiatry, has been awarded a research grant by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP).
The grant will fund Averill's project, "Brain Connectivity Networks and Predictors of Rapid Improvement in Suicidal Ideation among Veterans."
According to a letter to Averill from Jill Harkavy-Friedman, PhD, Vice President of Research for AFSP, reviewers of the proposal "expressed that this is an important study examining potential contributors to suicide. They noted that veterans with PTSD are at high risk for suicidal behavior and there are preliminary data suggesting that ketamine infusions may have rapid, large beneficial effects and that this is a strong proposal from a very promising young investigator."
Gerard Sanacora, MD, PhD, Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the Yale Depression Research Program, is the primary mentor for the award. Averill and Sanacora will collaborate closely with John Krystal, MD, Robert L. McNeil, Jr. Professor of Neuroscience and Chair of the Yale Department of Psychiatry, and Chadi Abdallah, MD, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry.
Last year, Averill was chosen to be one of eight recipients of a 2017 two-year Patterson Trust Mentored Clinical Research Award.
The grant is funding Averill’s research into rapid-acting treatments for suicidal ideation (SI) among veterans with PTSD. An estimated 22 veterans die by suicide daily in the United States, according to her grant proposal. There are only two FDA-approved medications for PTSD, and both require weeks and, in some cases, months to take effect.
Research demonstrates that ketamine, an investigational antidepressant, may rapidly reduce symptoms of PTSD and SI. Research suggests that ketamine’s effects begin within two hours after dosing and peak approximately 24 hours after treatment.
The study is applying multidisciplinary tools such as functional magnetic resonance imaging and clinical and cognitive assessment to examine neurobiological mechanisms underlying SI in veterans with PTSD, according to the proposal.