Jordan W. Smoller, MD, ScD, Professor of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School; Assoc. Chief for Research, Department of Psychiatry, Mass. General Hospital; Director, Psychiatric and Neurodevelopmental Genetics Unit, MGH Center for Genomic Medicine

Since the arrival of DSM-III in 1980, the dominant diagnostic classification system for mental disorders has been largely “atheoretical.” Psychiatric disorders are still defined using criteria arrived at by expert consensus and without reference to etiopathology. Advances in genomic research offer the possibility of grounding diagnostic entities in causal biology. While genomic findings support the view that DSM-defined disorders are heritable phenotypes, they are also challenging the boundaries of our clinically defined disorders. In this talk, I will review the emerging picture of the genetic structure of mental disorders and discuss the implications of psychiatric genetics for psychiatric nosology.

Seminar on Ethical, Legal and Social Implications of Genetics

Monday, December 19, 2022 •  12:00 pm – 1:00pm

To register and receive the Zoom link, please email Alfa Garcia