Gerard Sanacora, MD, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the Yale University School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut, and the Director of the Yale Depression Research Program. Dr. Sanacora earned a BS in both Biology and Psychology from the State University of New York (SUNY) at Stony Brook, New York.  He continued his studies there earning his PhD in Physiology and Biophysics in 1992, and his MD in 1994. He completed his psychiatry residency training in the Clinical Neuroscience Research Training Program at Yale University and remained there for a fellowship in the Neuroimaging Scientist Training Program. 

Dr. Sanacora’s research interests include the study of the pathophysiological processes associated with mood disorders, and the mechanisms of antidepressant action.  His work is focused largely on a translational research model exploring the roles of the amino acid neurotransmitter systems and cell plasticity in the neurobiology of mood disorders. He has published in several peer-reviewed publications including Archives of General Psychiatry, American Journal of Psychiatry, Biological Psychiatry and has written several review articles and book chapters pertaining to the neurobiology of mood disorders.  In addition, he has received several awards and honors, including, the Charles H. Dana Foundation Award for Clinical Hypotheses in Neuroscience and the NARSAD Klerman award honorable mention for outstanding project in both 2003 and 2005.