Studies of relational memory function may reveal novel mechanisms for therapeutic intervention for patients in the early stages of psychosis.

Functional MRI studies have revealed that targeting activation of certain brain regions may improve working memory and cognition in psychotic disorders.

Inhibited temperament — a tendency to respond to novelty with wariness, fear or caution — may be a risk factor for schizophrenia that could be targeted for preventative interventions.

A $10 million endowed gift will fund translational research, support clinical programs and create an endowed chair within the Department of Psychiatry.

Ariel Deutch and colleagues have discovered that overactive brain immune cells during adolescence may contribute to schizophrenia.

Using a unique computational framework they developed, a team of scientist cyber-sleuths in the Vanderbilt University Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics and the Vanderbilt Genetics Institute (VGI) has identified 104 high-risk genes for schizophrenia.

With the aid of a four-year, $3.4 million grant from the National Institute of Mental Health, researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) will apply new techniques to investigate treatment resistance of two devastating mental disorders — major depressive disorder, which befalls 15 percent of people at some point in their lives, and schizophrenia, which affects approximately 1 percent.