Anissa Abi-Dargham
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Anissa Abi-Dargham is an American psychiatrist and researcher. She is a psychiatry professor and vice-chair of research at
Stony Brook University Stony Brook University (SBU), officially the State University of New York at Stony Brook, is a public university, public research university in Stony Brook, New York, United States, on Long Island. Along with the University at Buffalo, it is on ...
and professor emerita at the
Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons The Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons (officially known as Columbia University Roy and Diana Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons) is the medical school of Columbia University, located at the Columbia University Irvin ...
. She was previously the Chief of the Division of Translational Imaging in the Psychiatry Department at Columbia. She also served as Director of Clinical and Imaging Research in the Lieber Center for Schizophrenia Research, and Director of the Silvio O. Conte Center for the study of "Dopamine Dysfunction in Schizophrenia", both based at the New York State Psychiatric Institute.


Education

Abi-Dargham pursued her medical education at
Saint Joseph's University Saint Joseph's University (SJU or St. Joe's) is a Private university, private Jesuits, Jesuit university in Philadelphia, Lower Merion Township, Pennsylvania, and Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The university was founded by the Jesuits, Society of J ...
in Beirut, Lebanon, before relocating to the United States in 1985. She completed her residency at the
University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee, Knoxville (or The University of Tennessee; UT; UT Knoxville; or colloquially UTK or Tennessee) is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee, United St ...
, In Memphis, which was followed by a research fellowship at the
National Institute of Mental Health The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is one of 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIH, in turn, is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services and is the primar ...
. In 1992, Abi-Dargham completed her Post-Doctoral Fellow at Yale University School of Medicine.


Research

Abi-Dargham has used molecular imaging techniques, such as
single photon emission computed tomography Single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT, or less commonly, SPET) is a nuclear medicine tomographic imaging technique using gamma rays. It is very similar to conventional nuclear medicine planar imaging using a gamma camera (that is, ...
(SPECT) and
positron emission tomography Positron emission tomography (PET) is a functional imaging technique that uses radioactive substances known as radiotracers to visualize and measure changes in metabolic processes, and in other physiological activities including blood flow, r ...
(PET), to study the pathophysiology of
schizophrenia Schizophrenia () is a mental disorder characterized variously by hallucinations (typically, Auditory hallucination#Schizophrenia, hearing voices), delusions, thought disorder, disorganized thinking and behavior, and Reduced affect display, f ...
, schizophrenia-related spectrum disorders, and
addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to use a drug or engage in a behavior that produces natural reward, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use can ...
. With her collaborators, Abi-Dargham has done PET and fMRI studies on dopamine receptor density and network connectivity in both healthy individuals and patients with schizophrenia. Her work has resulted in seminal publications describing the complex alterations of
dopamine Dopamine (DA, a contraction of 3,4-dihydroxyphenethylamine) is a neuromodulatory molecule that plays several important roles in cells. It is an organic chemical of the catecholamine and phenethylamine families. It is an amine synthesized ...
transmission in schizophrenia and their relationship to clinical symptoms, cognition and response to treatment, as well as their interrelatedness to
glutamate Glutamic acid (symbol Glu or E; known as glutamate in its anionic form) is an α-amino acid that is used by almost all living beings in the biosynthesis of proteins. It is a Essential amino acid, non-essential nutrient for humans, meaning that ...
dysfunction in schizophrenia. These studies showed increased striatal dopamine release in schizophrenia, which has become one of the most established findings of schizophrenia research and is now being tested as a
biomarker In biomedical contexts, a biomarker, or biological marker, is a measurable indicator of some biological state or condition. Biomarkers are often measured and evaluated using blood, urine, or soft tissues to examine normal biological processes, ...
for risk to develop schizophrenia in prodromal patients. The work with cortical D1 receptor has provided added rationale for testing D1
agonists An agonist is a chemical that activates a receptor to produce a biological response. Receptors are cellular proteins whose activation causes the cell to modify what it is currently doing. In contrast, an antagonist blocks the action of the agon ...
in schizophrenia. A new direction for work in her imaging group now is
dual diagnosis Dual diagnosis (also called co-occurring disorders (COD) or dual pathology) is the condition of having a mental illness and a comorbid substance use disorder. Several US based surveys suggest that about half of those with a mental illness will ...
patients with comorbid schizophrenia and
cannabis ''Cannabis'' () is a genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae that is widely accepted as being indigenous to and originating from the continent of Asia. However, the number of species is disputed, with as many as three species be ...
abuse. She and her team found that most drug addictions blunt dopamine release during the chronic phase of drug dependence, which results in poor outcomes. In a popular interview, she explained, "The bottom line is that long-term, heavy cannabis use may impair the dopaminergic system, which could have a variety of negative effects on learning and behavior." Ultimately this work is relevant to developing
biomarkers In biomedical contexts, a biomarker, or biological marker, is a measurable indicator of some biological state or condition. Biomarkers are often measured and evaluated using blood, urine, or soft tissues to examine normal biological processes, p ...
and more focused treatment interventions for these disorders.


Awards and honors

Abi-Dargham has received numerous awards, and published over 165 articles in major scientific journals. She is the deputy editor of imaging for both
neuropsychopharmacology Neuropsychopharmacology, an interdisciplinary science related to psychopharmacology (study of effects of drugs on the mind) and fundamental neuroscience, is the study of the neural mechanisms that drugs act upon to influence behavior. It entails ...
and
biological psychiatry Biological psychiatry or biopsychiatry is an approach to psychiatry that aims to understand mental disorder in terms of the biology, biological function of the nervous system. It is interdisciplinary in its approach and draws on sciences such as ...
, President of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology, and former president of the Brain Imaging Council for the Society of Nuclear Medicine. Additionally, she has a large portfolio of federal, charitable and industry-funded studies. In 2016, she was elected to membership in the
National Academy of Medicine The National Academy of Medicine (NAM), known as the Institute of Medicine (IoM) until 2015, is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Medicine is a part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineerin ...
.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Abi-Dargham, Anissa Living people Columbia Medical School faculty Stony Brook University faculty Year of birth missing (living people) Place of birth missing (living people) Members of the National Academy of Medicine American women psychiatrists American psychiatrists 21st-century American academics 21st-century American women scientists 21st-century American women physicians 21st-century American physicians