Research has demonstrated a causal relation between central and peripheral immune dysregulations and the onset and continuation of severe mental illness (SMI, including Schizophrenia, Major Depressive Disorder and Bipolar Disorder) making them crucial treatment targets. Our research group has dedicated considerable efforts to investigating:
- The bidirectional association between immune mechanisms and clinical trajectories in SMI, and investigating the value of immune aberrances as diagnostic, predictive and prognostic biomarkers.
- Assessing the potential benefits of immunomodulation as a treatment approach for psychiatric illnesses.
- Investigating the connection between infections, including but not limited to COVID-19 and the subsequent onset of psychiatric illnesses. We seek to identify the underlying processes involved in the development post-infection neuropsychiatric complications, and the increased risks of adverse outcomes after infection of patients with pre-existent SMI