SearchResearchers in the Mood Disorders program at NKI investigate the neurobiology of mood disorders, including major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder, as well as cognitive disorders (such as Alzheimer’s disease), and novel treatments for these conditions, including pharmacological agents and brain stimulation strategies.
Our past work includes the clinical and mechanistic study of novel, rapidly acting treatments for mood disorders, such as ketamine, minocycline, low field magnetic stimulation, and the recognition and treatment of cognitive deficits associated with mood disorders.
Our current studies focus on transcranial photobiomodulation – which is being tested, separately, in subjects with major depression and in those with early-stage Alzheimer’s disease.
In our studies we use multiple neuroimaging methods – such as functional MRI (fMRI), magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and positron emission tomography (18F-MK6240 PET) – as well as quantitative electroencephalography and neuropsychological testing to investigate associated neurobehavioral substrates.
Active Studies
- Transcranial Near-Infrared Radiation and Cerebral Blood Flow in Depression, R33 (TRIADE-R33)
- Transcranial Photobiomodulation for Alzheimer’s Disease (TRAP-AD)
Recent Publications
- Iosifescu DV, Song X, Gersten MB, Adib A, Cho Y, Collins KM, Yates KF, Hurtado-Puerto AM, McEachern KM, Osorio RS, Cassano P. Protocol Report on the Transcranial Photobiomodulation for Alzheimer’s Disease (TRAP-AD) Study. Healthcare (Basel). 2023 Jul 13;11(14):2017. doi: 10.3390/healthcare11142017. PMID: 37510458; PMCID: PMC10378818.
- Tural U, Sparpana A, Sullivan E, Iosifescu DV. Comparison of Adiponectin Levels in Anorexia Nervosa, Bulimia Nervosa, Binge-Eating Disorder, Obesity, Constitutional Thinness, and Healthy Controls: A Network Meta-Analysis. Life (Basel). 2023 May 13;13(5):1181. doi: 10.3390/life13051181. PMID: 37240826; PMCID: PMC10220738.
- Iosifescu DV, Collins KA, Hurtado-Puerto A, Irvin MK, Clancy JA, Sparpana AM, Sullivan EF, Parincu Z, Ratai E-M, Funes CJ, et al. Grant Report on the Transcranial near Infrared Radiation and Cerebral Blood Flow in Depression (TRIADE) Study. Photonics. 2023; 10(1):90. https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics10010090
- Parincu Z, Iosifescu DV. Combinations of dextromethorphan for the treatment of mood disorders – a review of the evidence. Expert Rev Neurother. 2023 Mar;23(3):205-212. doi: 10.1080/14737175.2023.2192402. Epub 2023 Mar 21. PMID: 36943010.
- Iosifescu DV, Norton RJ, Tural U, Mischoulon D, Collins K, McDonald E, De Taboada L, Foster S, Cusin C, Yeung A, Clain A, Schoenfeld D, Hamblin MR, Cassano P. Very Low-Level Transcranial Photobiomodulation for Major Depressive Disorder: The ELATED-3 Multicenter, Randomized, Sham-Controlled Trial. J Clin Psychiatry. 2022 Aug 8;83(5):21m14226. doi: 10.4088/JCP.21m14226. PMID: 35950904.
- Iosifescu DV. Pharmacogenomic Testing for Next-Step Antidepressant Selection: Still a Work in Progress. JAMA. 2022 Jul 12;328(2):146-148. doi: 10.1001/jama.2022.10018. PMID: 35819435.
- Tural U, Iosifescu DV. Adiponectin in anorexia nervosa and its modifiers: A meta-regression study. Int J Eat Disord. 2022 Oct;55(10):1279-1290. doi: 10.1002/eat.23753. Epub 2022 Jun 11. PMID: 35689560.
- Iosifescu DV, Jones A, O’Gorman C, Streicher C, Feliz S, Fava M, Tabuteau H. Efficacy and Safety of AXS-05 (Dextromethorphan-Bupropion) in Patients With Major Depressive Disorder: A Phase 3 Randomized Clinical Trial (GEMINI). J Clin Psychiatry. 2022 May 30;83(4):21m14345. doi: 10.4088/JCP.21m14345. PMID: 35649167.
- Collins KA, Eng GK, Tural Ü, Irvin MK, Iosifescu DV, Stern ER. Affective and somatic symptom clusters in depression and their relationship to treatment outcomes in the STAR*D sample. J Affect Disord. 2022 Mar 1;300:469-473. doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2021.12.046. Epub 2021 Dec 21. PMID: 34952119.