We seek to elucidate and modulate circuits in the brain that underlie both affective and addictive disorders in order to develop more effective treatments, particularly for individuals who suffer from the comorbidity of these diseases.
Our research is guided by two overarching questions:
Exposure to chronic stress, especially during adolescence, often results in increased anxiety and depression, and is associated with augmented risk of developing drug and alcohol addiction in adulthood. For example, patients diagnosed with anxiety or mood disorders are approximately twice as likely to develop substance/alcohol use disorder. Furthermore, individuals exposed to adverse events in childhood, such as childhood neglect and abuse, have a fourfold prevalence of developing maladaptive motivation and addictive behaviors in adulthood. Little is known about how exposure to early childhood stress causes changes in the brain to make these individuals more susceptible to developing substance/alcohol use disorder. It is therefore crucial to understand the neural substrates and mechanisms affected by stress, which then may lead to comorbid affective and addictive disorders.
The Karkhanis lab is within the Behavioral Neuroscience division of the Department of Psychology at Binghamton University - SUNY. We are also a part of the Developmental Exposure Alcohol Research Center (DEARC), a NIAAA funded P50, and the Center for Development and Behavioral Neuroscience (CDBN), an internally organized research center. Dr. Karkhanis, head of the Karkhanis lab, is affiliated with the NIAAA funded T32, Development and Neuroadaptations in Alcohol and Addiction (DNAA), housed in the Department of Psychology.
@TheKarkhanisLab