The BEAR Lab explores how experiences across the lifespan shape the brain and behavior. We study how early-life factors, such as exposure to stress, trauma, and different parenting styles, can influence development in lasting ways. At the same time, we ask whether later-life experiences, including the use of psychedelic compounds, may help restore healthy brain functioning and provide therapeutic benefits. To answer these questions, we use both rodent and human studies, allowing us to connect insights from controlled experiments with real-world experiences.
By looking at both the risks of early challenges and the potential for healing later in life, we aim to better understand how experiences mold the mind and body over time. With this approach, we hope to deepen our understanding of human development, and also guide the creation of more effective and personalized treatment options for those affected by stress, trauma, and other challenges across the lifespan.
Developmental Studies
Stress-related psychiatric disorders (SRPDs) are now the leading disease burden worldwide and diagnoses are increasing in both adolescents and adults. However, our understanding of the etiology and biology underlying SRPD development is lacking. This study uses modern computational methods with genetic, epigenetic, and brain data to identify biocomposites that reflect the impact of early life adversity on SRPD symptoms across from childhood through early adulthood.
By partnering with local and national twin cohorts, including the Arizona Twin Project and the Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes program, our lab studies how experiences like parenting style and other environmental exposures affect biological systems like the brain and the gut via epigenetic regulation of gene expression. Through this work, we aim to uncover how environments shape mental health across development.
Early life stress can have lasting effects on the brain and behavior. Using a maternal separation model in rats, we found that stress during the first weeks of life increased methamphetamine use in adulthood and caused lasting changes in key epigenetic markers in the brain’s reward system. These results suggest that early experiences can shape both vulnerability to drug use and the underlying biology of the brain.
Psychedelic Studies
The Psychedelic Genome Project (PGP) aims to collect genetic and epigenetic data, along with data on the psychedelic, clinical, and any potential adverse effects of psychedelics. We collect data from people receiving psychedelic treatments (e.g., at a ketamine clinic), other psychedelic services (such as in Oregon and Colorado, where state law permits psilocybin services), and participants in psychedelic clinical trials (like this MDMA trial).
Psychedelics, such as psilocybin, ketamine, and MDMA are known for the profound effects they exert on cognition, emotion, and perception. This study aims to expand our knowledge about the long-term effects of psychedelic use on mental health. To accomplish this, we are collecting data about psychedelic use history, as well as negative experiences that people can have, and different types of cognitive, mood and anxiety symptoms that people sometimes report.
Psilocybin, a naturally occurring psychedelic, has shown promise in human trials for treating mood disorders and other psychiatric conditions. In this study, we use mice to explore whether psilocybin can protect against age-related declines in learning, memory, and mood, while also investigating how it alters epigenetic patterns in the brain that support long-term resilience and healthy aging.