Mental Health Regina Lapate
The work During her previous training as a clinical psychologist, Regina Lapate saw young patients, children and adolescents, with depression and anxiety — yet little about their environment, social structures or prior experiences seemed to explain why they were suffering at an early age. While treating these patients, she became bothered by the lack of a holistic understanding of these disorders that incorporated biology. Today, Lapate and her lab are working toward exactly that aim. Focusing on the intersection of emotion and cognition, they use electroencephalography, peripheral physiology and functional neuroimaging — often combined with behavioral assays — to examine individual differences in emotion regulation, a critical underlying source of difficulties that can lead to, or be exacerbated by, mental health issues. Their current research includes studies detailing prefrontal control of emotion and how emotion modulates motor function, as well as temporal coding and the possibility that those with more distorted temporal memory of affective experiences could be more likely to develop symptoms of anxiety and depression. An upcoming project will use neuroimaging and non-invasive brain stimulation targeting the hippocampal region in an effort to enhance temporal coding and see if it can be manipulated for the better — an advancement that could inform future treatments.