Stanley Center for Psychiatric Research

The International Schizophrenia Genetics Consortium (ISC)

The ISC was established to promote rapid progress towards the identification of genetic causes underlying schizophrenia.

The Behavioral Neurogenetics group uses mouse behavioral models relevant to bipolar disorder and schizophrenia to determine the functional consequences of gene variants associated with risk of bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, and to examine in vivo the mechanisms of established psychiatric treatments and novel therapeutics. The group is a unique resource by conducting behavioral assessments and providing expertise in a broad range of mouse behavioral paradigms to the Stanley Center projects.

Our efforts are focused in two complementary areas:

The overall goal of the Neurobiology program within the Stanley Center is to gain insights into pathways involved in the pathogenesis of bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. These insights will be translated into cell-based and animal-based assays useful for drug discovery and evaluation. Dr. Li-Huei Tsai, a Professor at MIT in the Picower Center for Learning and Memory and Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, heads our effort. Additionally, close ties to the MIT Neuroscience community are facilitating this work.

The Chemical Biology program within the Stanley Center is focused on both cell-based screens in various neuronal and non neuronal cells as well as in vitro biochemical assays. The cell screens are aimed at defining a cell state that is thought to be related to a pathophysiological process involved in bipolar disorder or schizophrenia. High-throughput screens are being conducted that can potentially detect compounds that will confer a more desirable state or biochemical activity. Secondary screens are used to further characterize initial hits.