Our Research
Our multidisciplinary research focuses on the psychosocial pathways involved in disease progression and recovery in drug addiction and related psychiatric disorders, namely stress and emotion-regulation related psychopathologies. A systems approach transcending brain-periphery-environment factors is used to examine how psychosocial processes relate with neurobiological correlates of behavior.
Research is directed to advance understanding of:
1) how biomarkers associated with early adversity play lifelong roles in disease trajectory;
2) what are the impacts of adverse and protective psychosocial factors on brain structure and function in adults; and
3) what are the immune mechanisms that link between psychosocial factors and neurobiological markers.
Multidisciplinary Approach
To investigate these questions, neuropsychological and behavioral assessments are used along with functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), and analyzing peripheral biomarker assays. Through this work we seek to identify targetable mediators linking environment (stress) to psychiatric disorder and to facilitate the development of novel prevention strategies, diagnostic tools, and interventions.
Keren Bachi, Ph.D., LCSW
Principal Investigator
Dr. Keren Bachi, PhD, LCSW, is a neuroscientist and a clinical trialist whose rich clinical background set the stage for her scientific path. Dr. Bachi’s research program centers on the investigation of neurobiological underpinnings of social factors – primarily long term effects of early life adversity – across comorbidities including stress related disorders and addictions aimed to glean insights for novel prevention, early intervention, and treatments. The research questions Dr. Bachi studies build on her clinical observations coupled with scientific knowledge, facilitating a two-way bridge between clinic and research.
