Fabio Ferrarelli, MD, PhD

  • Associate Professor, Psychiatry

Phone

4128641668

E-mail

ferrarellif@upmc.edu

Personal Website

http://www.pynel.pitt.edu/

Campus Address

3501 Forbes Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA, 15213

Research Grants

Characterize Differences in Sleep Spindles between Clinical High Risk and Healthy Controls Longitudinally (R01MH113827)
To characterize the role of sleep spindle parameters in moderating cognitive, social, and clinical functioning trajectories, including transition to psychosis, among youth at clinical high risk.

Elucidating Neural Mechanisms of Hypo/mania Using Theta Burst Stimulation (R01MH122990-01)
To determine the impact of TBS on left vlPFC and related brain circuitry activity and functional connectivity during reward anticipation.

Enhancing Prefrontal Oscillatory Activity and Working Memory Performance with Noninvasive Brain Stimulation in Early-course Schizophrenia (R01MH125816)
To establish whether, by acutely enhancing DLPFC oscillatory activity, we see To establish whether, by acutely enhancing DLPFC oscillatory activity, we see a corresponding improvement in WM function in EC-SCZ patients.

One-Line Research Description

Neural circuits implicated in the development, pathophysiology, and treatment of schizophrenia and other major psychiatric disorders

• Employ multimodal imaging research techniques, including high density (hd)-EEG during sleep and wakefulness, Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), structural and functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), and Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Imaging (MRSI) in healthy and psychiatric populations to characterize the neurobiology and related cognitive dysfunctions of major psychiatric disorders, including obsessive compulsive, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia.

• Identify novel treatment targets and approaches, including neuromodulatory interventions for psychotic and other major psychiatric disorders

Representative Publications

Mayeli A, LaGoy A, Donati FL, Kaskie RE, Najibi SM, Ferrarelli F. Sleep abnormalities in individuals at clinical high risk for psychosis. J Psychiatr Res. 2021 Mar 8; 137:328-334. doi: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2021. 03.006. Online ahead of print. PMID: 33744512

LaGoy AD, Kaskie R, Connaboy C, Germain A, Ferrarelli F. Overnight Sleep Parameter Increases in Frontoparietal Areas Predict Working Memory Improvements in Healthy Participants but Not in Individuals with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Biol Psychiatry Cogn Neurosci Neuroimaging. 2021 Jan 12:S2451-9022(21)00002-1. doi: 10.1016/j.bpsc.2020.12.013. Online ahead of print. PMID: 33757793

Donati FL, Kaskie R, Reis CC, D'Agostino A, Casali AG, Ferrarelli F. Reduced TMS-evoked fast oscillations in the motor cortex predict the severity of positive symptoms in first episode psychosis. Prog. Neuro-psychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry. 2021 Jun 12;111:110387. doi: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2021.110387. PMID: 34129889

LaGoy AD, Cashmere JD, Beckner ME, Eagle SR, Sinnott AM, Conkright WR, Miller E, Derrow C, Dretsch MN, Flanagan SD, Nindl BC, Connaboy C, Germain A, Ferrarelli F. A trait of mind: stability and robustness of sleep across sleep opportunity manipulations during simulated military operational stress. Sleep. 2021 Aug 25:zsab219. doi: 10.1093/sleep/zsab219. Online ahead of print. PMID: 34432067

Ferrarelli F, Phillips ML. Examining and Modulating Neural Circuits in Psychiatric Disorders with Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation and Electroencephalography: Present Practices and Future Developments. Am J Psychiatry. 2021 Mar 3:appiajp202020071050. doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2020. 20071050. PMID: 33653120.

Ferrarelli F. Sleep Abnormalities in Schizophrenia: State of the Art and Next Steps. Am J Psychiatry. 2021 Mar 17:appiajp202020070968. doi: 10.1176/appi.ajp.2020.20070968. PMID: 33726524