Research
The genetic basis of neurobehavioral traits, development of research tools to facilitate the genetic investigation of complex traits
Appointments
- Director, Biological Samples Processing Core (BSPC)
- Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics
- Informatics Center for Neurogenetics and Neurogenomics (ICNN)
- UCLA Neuroscience Genomics Core
- Professor, Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences
- Member, Neuroscience IDP
- Adult Psychiatry
- Brain Research Institute
- CTSI
Biography
The research in Dr. Freimer’s laboratory aims to identify the genetic basis of complex traits, particularly neurobehavioral phenotypes such as bipolar disorder, Tourette Syndrome, and temperament. Together with numerous collaborators the lab has centered its studies around three foci:
1) using genomewide genetic approaches to map neurobehavioral traits
2) developing innovative approaches to phenotype neurobehavioral traits
3) emphasizing the importance of population genetics for gene mapping, particularly the use of population isolates.
Publications
- O'Connell, KS, Koromina, M, van der Veen, T, Boltz, T, David, FS, Yang, JMK et al.. Genomics yields biological and phenotypic insights into bipolar disorder. Nature. 2025;639 (8056):968-975. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-08468-9. PubMed PMID:39843750 .
- Akre, S, Seok, D, Douglas, C, Aguilera, A, Carini, S, Dunn, J et al.. Advancing digital sensing in mental health research. NPJ Digit Med. 2024;7 (1):362. doi: 10.1038/s41746-024-01343-x. PubMed PMID:39695319 PubMed Central PMC11655837.
- Service, SK, De La Hoz, JF, Diaz-Zuluaga, AM, Arias, A, Pimplaskar, A, Luu, C et al.. Predicting Diagnostic Conversion From Major Depressive Disorder to Bipolar Disorder: An EHR Based Study From Colombia. Bipolar Disord. 2025;27 (1):47-56. doi: 10.1111/bdi.13512. PubMed PMID:39666719 PubMed Central PMC11848012.
- Dean, AC, Pochon, JB, Bilder, RM, Sabb, FW, Congdon, E, Ghahremani, D et al.. Convergent Validity of Experimental Cognitive Tests in a Large Community Sample. Assessment. 2024; :10731911241283410. doi: 10.1177/10731911241283410. PubMed PMID:39523501 .
- Strom, NI, Halvorsen, MW, Grove, J, Ásbjörnsdóttir, B, Luðvígsson, P, Thorarensen, Ó et al.. Genome-Wide Association Study Meta-Analysis of 9619 Cases With Tic Disorders. Biol Psychiatry. 2025;97 (7):743-752. doi: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2024.07.025. PubMed PMID:39389409 .