In a wide-ranging interview published in Brain Medicine, Dr. Mary L. Phillips, Pittsburgh Foundation-Emmerling Endowed Chair and Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh, describes a career built on one stubborn conviction: that the emotional storms of bipolar disorder leave traceable fingerprints in neural circuitry, and that those fingerprints can be read before the storm arrives. Elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 2024 and recipient of the Society of Biological Psychiatry Gold Medal Award that same year, Dr. Phillips discusses the mentors who shaped her, her translational agenda for developing circuit-level biomarkers to identify at-risk youth, and the frustration that propelled her from clinical observation toward precision psychiatry. She also reveals that her greatest fear is boredom, her greatest extravagance is a 2003 red Ford Thunderbird, and her philosophy fits seven words: goals and routes, never confuse the two.

Bull sharks form social relationships with specific “friends”, new research reveals.

The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation (BBRF) today announced it will award $1 million in Distinguished Investigator Grants to 10 senior scientists conducting innovative research in neurobiological and behavioral science. The $100,000, one-year grants will support studies focused on critical mental health challenges, including depression, autism spectrum disorder, PTSD, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, cocaine use disorder, and chronic cannabis use. The awards are funded by the WoodNext Foundation and mark the third year of a five-year, $5 million commitment to support BBRF’s Distinguished Investigator Grants program.