The UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital (WPH) Center for Interventional Psychiatry (CIP) outpatient clinic has long provided cutting-edge, specialized treatment for individuals whose psychiatric disorders have not responded to first-line treatment such as psychotherapy and medication. Patients with conditions including treatment-resistant depression, catatonia, persistent mania, difficult-to-treat schizophrenia, and...

We are pleased to announce that Stephen Smagula, PhD, has received conferral of tenure at the rank of associate professor by the University of Pittsburgh. Dr. Smagula’s research focuses on circadian rhythm disruptions as a causal risk for depression, suicidal ideation, and dementia in older people. The overarching goal of his research is to determine if treating sleep problems behaviorally reduces depression and...

We are pleased to report that Pitt Psychiatry faculty members have received the following recognitions: Paul D. MacLean Award for Outstanding Neuroscience Research in Psychosomatic Medicine Layla Banihashemi, PhD (Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Bioengineering), was chosen to receive the Society for Biopsychosocial Science and Medicine’s Paul D. MacLean Award for Outstanding Neuroscience Research in...

We are pleased to announce that Fabio Ferrarelli, MD, PhD, has been promoted to Professor of Psychiatry by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dr. Ferrarelli received his MD from Catholic University of the Sacred Heart (UCSC) in Rome, where he additionally completed his psychiatry residency, followed by a PhD in psychiatry. He came to the United States for additional residency training, which he...

Lithium deficiency, resulting from its sequestration by amyloid plaques, may contribute to neurodegeneration in Alzheimer’s disease. A growing body of evidence suggests that lithium may protect against dementia, but no randomized clinical trial had yet combined cognitive assessment, neuroimaging, and plasma biomarkers to test this rigorously in humans. The Lithium as a Treatment to Prevent Impairment of Cognition...

We are pleased to announce that Thomas Karikari, PhD, has been promoted to Associate Professor of Psychiatry by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dr. Karikari earned his PhD in life sciences/neuroscience from the University of Warwick, Coventry (UK). Upon receiving his doctorate, he received a Royal Society of Chemistry fellowship to conduct postdoctoral research at Harvard Medical School. Dr...

In uncertain environments, organisms must decide whether to stick with a known, rewarding choice (exploit) or search for something potentially better (explore). Early on, behavior leans toward exploration, but once good options are identified, it shifts toward exploitation. When only a few choices are available, subcortical regions such as the striatum and amygdala can arbitrate between exploration and exploitation...

Congratulations to Victor Villemagne, MD (Levidow-Pittsburgh Foundation Chair in Alzheimer's Disease and Dementia Disorders and Professor of Psychiatry), who has been elected to the Association of American Physicians (AAP). Selection to membership in AAP is an indication of the pre‐eminence and the highest caliber of physician‐led science accomplishments and scientific leadership. One of the most highly regarded...

The University of Pittsburgh NeuroBioBank (NBB) Brain and Tissue Repository was recently renewed by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for a five-year, $10M contract. Due to the generosity of donor families, the Pitt NBB is an invaluable resource for investigators using postmortem human brain tissue for research. It is led by director David Lewis, MD (Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience...

We are pleased to announce that Mary Woody, PhD, has been promoted to Associate Professor of Psychiatry by the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. Dr. Woody earned her PhD in clinical psychology from Binghamton University, having completed her clinical psychology internship at UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital (WPH). She remained in Pittsburgh for postdoctoral training in Pitt Psychiatry’s National...