UTHealth Houston researchers awarded NIH grant to study peripartum depression

Written by: Halle Jones

Using a combination of biomarkers and mood assessments, researchers will study how pregnant women who are experiencing depression respond to different antidepressants in a clinical trial funded by a grant from the National Institutes of Health to UTHealth Houston. Depression affects approximately 12% of pregnant women, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The goal of the study, led by Laura Goetzl, MD, and Sudhakar Selvaraj, MD, PhD, of McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, is to develop a new testing paradigm to rapidly identify women who are responders to antidepressants. At the same time, the researchers will investigate how those antidepressants might affect the developing baby’s brain.

Goetzl, a professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences at McGovern Medical School, will examine maternal blood samples before and after the start of antidepressant medication to determine the effect of treatment on messages from the fetal brain found in maternal blood. These messages are found within small particles called extracellular vesicles that are released from the fetal brain, cross the placenta, and enter the maternal blood stream, carrying proteins and other biomarkers. Goetzl will also test maternal blood from the third trimester to identify markers for risk of neonatal withdrawal, or neonatal abstinence syndrome, from the antidepressant.

“We will be able to predict which moms are going to respond and which aren’t by looking at the messages that came from their brain and how their brain is responding to the medication,” said Goetzl, vice chair of the department for translational research. “The novel thing about our research is that we can also separate out signals coming specifically from the baby’s brain in the mom’s blood. This gives us a noninvasive window into what’s happening in the baby’s brain before and after starting antidepressant medication.”

Mothers on an antidepressant will be evaluated through specific questionnaires and mood scales to see if their depression gets better while taking the medication, while their blood-based markers will simultaneously be measured throughout the treatment during pregnancy.



“Pregnancy mental health is a largely ignored area,” said Selvaraj, associate professor and director of the Depression Research Program at the Louis A. Faillace, MD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences with McGovern Medical School. “Depression during pregnancy is a very serious problem that affects the mother and the baby, and most women do not receive sufficient evaluation or treatment. If there is a marker that can tell which prescribed medication works, then we can do proper treatment and reduce any problems.”

Soares named to ACNP Nominating Committee

Jair C. Soares, MD, PhD, professor and Pat Rutherford, Jr. Chair in Psychiatry at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston, was recently elected to serve on the 2023 American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP) Nominating Committee.

As part of the committee, Soares will oversee nominating individuals to serve on the executive council or hold any of the offices the organization has, such as president, treasurer, and others.

ACNP was founded in 1961 and is an international professional organization of leading brain scientists. Members are selected based on their original research contributions. A diverse membership is made up of several subfields of neuroscience, including behavioral pharmacology, clinical psychopharmacology, epidemiology, genetics, molecular biology, neurochemistry, neuroendocrinology, neuroimaging, neuroimmunology, neurophysiology, neurology, psychiatry, and psychology.

The principal functions of the college are research and education. The research goals are to offer investigators the opportunity for cross-disciplinary communication, and to promote the application of various neuroscientific disciplines to the study of all forms of mental illness and their treatment.

Educational goals are to encourage young scientists to enter research careers in neuropsychopharmacology and to develop and provide accurate information about psychiatric disorders and treatment. Members are considered thought leaders in psychiatry and pharmacology. 

Soares directs the Center of Excellence on Mood Disorders, which focuses on the search for the causes and the development of new treatments for mood disorders. The center has an active research team who specializes in clinical neurosciences.

Soares has received numerous honors and awards, including the National Plaque of Honor, Republic of Panama, the Devereux Clinic Emy Award, and the “Best Doctor Award,” and he has published more than 300 peer-reviewed articles for various medical journals. Soares is also a former president of the International Society of Affective Disorders and the American Association for Chairs of Academic Department of Psychiatry. He is the current vice president for the National Network of Depression Centers.

Spotlight:

Zold brings expertise to UTHealth Houston 

Amanda Zold, PhD, assistant professor in the Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, recently joined the department to provide psychological services at UTHealth Houston Harris County Psychiatric Center.

Zold’s primary clinical interest is in treatment delivery and innovation to expand evidence-based care for adults with severe mental illness, specifically schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Her research and clinical work has resulted in expertise in working with co-occurring substance use disorders.



Zold earned her Master in Clinical Psychology for the University of Alaska, Anchorage and continued on to get a PhD in clinical-community psychology, focused on rural and indigenous populations. While in Alaska, Zold provided clinical care in the state psychiatric hospital and multiple mental health settings, serving individuals with a combination of severe mental illness and substance use disorders. She also worked on multiple research grants to reduce harm and provide intervention for substance use.

Zold’s passion for working in this field took her to the University of Arizona College of Medicine in Tucson, where she completed an internship working in an outpatient early intervention center for psychosis and inpatient provision of care. When her internship ended, she continued her work at the Institute of Living/Hartford Hospital working in the Schizophrenia Rehabilitation Center and inpatient hospital, first as a postdoctoral resident, and then as a staff clinical psychologist.

Now at UTHealth Houston, Zold’s goals are to increase programming across a continuum of care to support individuals with co-occurring disorders in the recovery process. She is excited to bring her experience to UTHealth Houston and expand her knowledge.

“The most rewarding part of my job is providing patient care and being involved with training and supervision of future providers,” Zold said. “I feel that as a profession and society we can do a better job addressing both mental health and substance use and working toward reduction of stigma that serves as a barrier to care.”

Outside of work, Zold enjoys exploring and being adventurous. She likes to hike, and visits various national parks all across the country. She also enjoys the many dining options Houston has as well as spending time with her two dogs. 

Nix named treasurer of HPS

Bobby Nix, MD, associate professor in the Faillace Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, was recently elected treasurer of the Houston Psychiatric Society (HPS).

HPS is an association for psychiatrists in the Greater Houston area providing an environment for psychiatrists of all practice settings to discuss issues unique to the specialty. HPS hosts educational programs and social events that allow members the opportunity to benefit from the professional experience of others, network, and develop their patient base is the society’s foundation.

The HPS treasurer assists the rest of the HPS executive committee in planning educational events, assists with the expansion of membership, and attends to the finances of the organization.

Nix is the Vice Chair for Clinical Affairs in the department, and one of the leading providers at the UT Physicians Outpatient Psychiatry Clinic. He treats a wide range of mental health conditions such as addictions, anxiety, bipolar disorder, depression, and binge eating disorders. 

Catalao receives travel award at sepsis symposium 

Carlos Henrique Rocha Catalao, PhD, a research fellow from the lab of Tatiana Barichello, PhD, lab, received a travel award for an abstract titled "3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl (HMG)-coenzyme A (CoA) reductase inhibitor modulates biomarkers related to Alzheimer's disease pathology in a sepsis-surviving rat model" at the Annual Sepsis Symposium 2022: Novel Landscape of Sepsis, held in September the Houston Methodist Research Institute.

Catalao's abstract focused on the potential pleiotropic effects of simvastatin, an HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor, and was supervised by Maria José Alves da Rocha, PhD, from the University of São Paulo, Brazil.

"We hypothesize that treatment with simvastatin, an HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor, interferes with pathways responsible for activating protein kinases that precede amyloidosis in animals surviving sepsis," Catalao said.

Sepsis survivors have persistent neuropsychiatry changes, including cognitive and behavioral dysfunction, which are associated with increased production of neurodegenerative biomarkers. The clinical manifestation of these changes is similar to those found in patients with Alzheimer's disease.

The conclusion from the abstract demonstrated that sepsis survivor animals treated with simvastatin pre - and post-treatment after sepsis induction showed improvement in inflammatory and oxidative stress parameters in regions responsible for memory and cognition.

"I’m excited and happy to receive the award,” Catalao said. "This work is very important because the beneficial effects found in a drug widely consumed worldwide leads us to question whether individuals who regularly take statins would be neuroprotective after a septic event."

This is the second consecutive year that the team led by Barichello has won the award. Last year, research fellow Vijayasree V. Giridharan, Pharm, PhD, received an award for an abstract titled “Brain Inflammatory Markers from Sepsis Postmortem Brain: A Systematic Review.”

Innate lymphoid cells in depression: Current status and perspectives - Science Direct - August 2022

Amit Kumar Madeshiyaa, AnilkumarPillai

Epigenetic GrimAge acceleration and cognitive impairment in bipolar disorder - PubMed.gov - July 2022

Camila N C Lima, Robert Suchting, Giselli Scaini, Valeria A Cuellar, Alexandra Del Favero-Campbell, Consuelo Walss-Bass, Jair C Soares, Joao Quevedo, Gabriel R Fries

Brain metabolic changes and clinical response to superolateral medial forebrain bundle deep brain stimulation for treatment-resistant depression - Molecular Psychiatry - August 2022

Christopher R. Conner, Joao Quevedo, Jair C. Soares, Albert J. Fenoy 

Genetics and epigenetics of self-injurious thoughts and behaviors: Systematic review of the suicide literature and methodological considerations - PubMed.gov - August 2022

Salahudeen Mirza, Anna R Docherty, Amanda Bakian, Hilary Coon, Jair C Soares, Consuelo Walss-Bass, Gabriel R Fries

Ron Acierno, PhD, was interviewed by Lifehacker about how to cope with PTSD after a car accident.

Luis Fernandez-Wische, MD, was interviewed by Telemundo Houston Channel 47 about new recommendations that children should be screened for anxiety starting at age 8. 

Jennifer Bahrman, PhD, talked to KPRC-TV Channel 2 about new recommendations that children are screened for anxiety starting at age 8.

Cristian Zeni, MD, PhD, appeared on KTRK-TV Channel 13’s town hall to discuss mental health issues and disparities in the Hispanic community ahead of World Mental Health Day. 

Zeni was also interviewed by Telemundo Houston Channel 47 for World Mental Health Day. 

João de Quevedo, MD, PhD, was interviewed by KPRC-TV Channel 2 about transcranial magnetic stimulation for treatment-resistant depression.

Ron Acierno, PhD, spoke to KHOU-TV Channel 11 about how Houstonians can manage their emotions after seeing images of Hurricane Ian that might remind them of traumatic experiences during Hurricane Harvey.

Deborah Pearson, PhD, was interviewed for Mind Health Report’s October edition about whether IQ matters. 

Louis A. Faillace, MD, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth Houston

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