Please join us for the upcoming Monthly Webinar on
March 26, 2025
at 12 Noon ET
“Trauma, Epigenetic Alterations, and Psychotherapy”
Cesar Alfonso, M.D.
Professor of Psychiatry
Columbia University, New York
Shabnam Nohesara, M.D.
Visiting Scholar
Dept. of Medicine (Biomed. Genetics)
Boston University
The recency model of the pathogenesis of psychiatric disorders refers to the association of recent stressors with the development of dysfunction. The accumulation model considers how stressors over time have a negative impact on physiological functions and may determine illness and progression. The vulnerability model identifies certain times in life (early childhood and adolescence) where trauma and stressors may lead to symptoms and dysfunction. The vulnerability model is of greatest relevance when understanding gene-environment interactions. This presentation will show how epigenetic mechanisms, especially DNA methylation, may mediate how psychosocial stressors alter gene function, and review the emerging scientific literature correlating environmental stressors (trauma) with DNA methylation in genomic regions associated with psychiatric disorders. Furthermore, the presenter will present evidence of how psychotherapeutic treatments, which recalibrate how an individual relates to their environment, result in DNA methylation changes as symptomatic improvement occurs, thus normalizing epigenetic aberrations.
Upcoming Webinars
…
April 9, 2025, 12-1 pm ET
Paul Rosenfield, M.D.
Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York
“Training Clinicians in Assessing and Addressing Social Determinants of Mental Health”
…
May 7, 2025, 12-1 pm ET
Shaili Jain, M.D.
Adjunct Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine, California
“Social Determinants of Mental Health in Women”
Previous Webinars
Dilip Jeste, MD
Global Research Network on Social Determinants of Mental Health and Exposomics, La Jolla, California, US
“Social Determinants of Health in Schizophrenia-Spectrum Psychotic Disorders: What Do the Data Actually Show?”
September 16, 2023
…
Deanna Barch, PhD
Washington University, St. Louis, Missouri, US
“The Enduring Impact of Poverty on Risk for Mental Health Challenges in Youth”
October 18, 2023
…
Steve Cole, PhD
University of California, Los Angeles, CA, US
“Social Regulation of Human Gene Expression: Implications for Interventions Targeting Social Determinants of Health”
November 8, 2023
…
Michael Compton, MD
Columbia University, New York, NY, US
“Food insecurity as a Social Determinant of Mental Health”
December 11, 2023
…
Dolores Malaspina, MD, MS, MSPH
The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, US
“Social Epigenetics, Racism, and Perinatal Trauma”
January 25th, 2024
…
Vincenzo Di Nicola, MPhil, MD, PhD, FRCPC, FCAHS, DLFAPA, DFCPA
Tenured Professor, Dept. of Psychiatry & Addictions Medicine
University of Montreal and Clinical Professor, The George Washington University
“From Populations to Patients:
Social Determinants of Health and Mental Health in Clinical Practice”
February 8, 2024
…
Vani Pariyadath, PhD
Jessica Mollick, PhD
Janani Prabhakar, PhD
Courte Van Voorhees, PhD
National Institute on Drug Abuse/National Institutes of Health (NIDA/NIH)
“NIDA Funding Priorities on Social Determinants and Exposomics”
March 12, 2024
…
Matcheri Keshavan, MD, & Walid Yasmin, PhD
“Exposome in schizophrenia and related disorders: what can it tell about diagnosis, prevention and treatment?”
May 15th, 2024
…
Dr. Jo-An Occipinti, Ph.D.
Head, Systems Modelling & Simulation,
Brain and Mind Ctr., U. of Sydney:
“Systems modeling & simulation to guide targeted investments for mental health & suicide prevention”
June 26, 2024
…
Subodh Dave, M.D.,
Dean, Royal College of Psychiatrists, London, U.K.
“From Doctor-Patient to Doctor-Community – Building a Public Health Literate Psychiatric Workforce”
July 17th, 2024
…
Pallavi Joshi, D.O., and Rajesh
Tampi, M.D.,
Creighton University, Creighton, NE
“Social Determinants of Health for Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias”
September 11, 2024
…
Prof. em. Ulrich Schnyder, MD,
University of Zurich
“Evidence-based Treatments for Trauma-Related Psychiatric Disorders”
October 29, 2024
…
Michael Green, Ph.D.,
University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA
“Social Isolation and Loneliness in Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder”
November 20, 2024