Investigating the Genetic and Biological Mechanisms That Predispose to Early-Onset Psychotic Illnesses
Tuesday, December 10, 2024, 2:00 pm EST
At the Early Psychosis Investigation Center (EPICenter) at Boston Children’s Hospital, directed by two-time BBRF grantee Dr. David Glahn, Dr. Brownstein and colleagues have been integrating clinical, translational and basic research with clinical care for children and adolescents with psychosis and their families. In this cohort of well-characterized children and adolescents, the team has discovered genetic and biological mechanisms that predispose to psychotic illnesses. In this webinar, Dr. Brownstein will discuss several discoveries--among them, that the rate of harmful genetic variations called copy-number variations (CNVs) in early-onset psychosis is similar to that seen in autism spectrum disorder; also, that children with early-onset psychosis have an increased burden of rare variants in a gene called GRIN2A.
Watch webinar recording:
Please use #BBRFWebinar when sharing or posting about our Meet the Scientist Webinars on social media.
Assistant Director of the Molecular Genomics Core Facility
Boston Children’s Hospital
2019 Young Investigator Grant
Dr. Brownstein is an Assistant Professor in Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and a Research Associate in the Division of Genetics and Genomics at Boston Children's Hospital. As the Scientific Director for the Manton Center for Orphan Disease Research Gene Discovery Core, Dr. Brownstein has been instrumental in the elucidation of several new disease genes for conditions such as intellectual disability, autism, SIDS, and very early onset psychosis. Currently, Dr. Brownstein is focused on the use of real world data for genetic discovery in partnership with Inspire.com, the world’s largest social network focused on health and disease.
Jeffrey Borenstein, M.D., serves as the President & CEO of the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation, the largest private funder of mental health research grants. Dr. Borenstein developed the Emmy-nominated public television program “Healthy Minds,” and serves as host and executive producer of the series. The program, broadcast nationwide, is available online, and focuses on topics in psychiatry in order to educate the public, reduce stigma and offer a message of hope. Dr. Borenstein served as Editor-in-Chief of Psychiatric News, the newspaper of the American Psychiatric Association from 2012 - 2023.
Dr. Borenstein is a Fellow of the New York Academy of Medicine and serves as the Chair of the Section of Psychiatry at the Academy. He also has served as the President of the New York State Psychiatric Association. Dr. Borenstein earned his undergraduate degree at Harvard and his medical degree at New York University.
