Our Meet the PI series continues on April 4, 2025 featuring the research of Layla Banihashemi, PhD, Associate Professor of Psychiatry & Bioengineering at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.
Dr. Banihashemi’s translational research program is focused on investigating central visceral circuits—the neural correlates of body-brain connections, critical for stress response—in both animal and human models. As a graduate student, she studied the structure and function of central visceral circuits (CVCs), and their role in stress responses, in preclinical animal models. She was the first to demonstrate the lasting effects of stress during the juvenile period in rodents. Dr. Banihashemi’s postdoctoral research examined hypothalamic and limbic forebrain stress reactivity. Her National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)-funded K01 career development award enabled her to study how childhood experiences (including trauma and socioeconomic deprivation) correlate with CVCs in humans. Building upon this prior research, she currently leads an NIMH R01 examining multiple domains of deprivation (e.g., neighborhood, cognitive, financial), and using ultra-high-field magnetic resonance imaging at 7T to examine CVCs.
Join us in person in the UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital Auditorium or via Zoom using the following information:
Zoom Link: https://pitt.zoom.us/j/93033979076
Passcode: 262901
For More Information. Please contact Shardai Key Ward at keysj4@upmc.edu.
CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDITS. The entirety of this program will be a lecture by the speaker(s). All individuals able to control the content of this educational activity are required to disclose all relevant financial relationships with any proprietary entity producing, marketing, re-selling, or distributing health care goods or services, used on, or consumed by, patients. Registration is not required for this event. This event is free and there will be no refunds. The University of Pittsburgh is an affirmative action, equal opportunity institution. The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education to provide continuing medical education for physicians. The University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine designates this educational activity for a maximum of 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 CreditsTM. Each physician should only claim credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity. Other health care professionals are awarded .15 continuing education units (CEUs), which are equal to 1.5 contact hours. In accordance with Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education requirements on disclosure, information about relationships of presenters with commercial interests (if any) will be included in materials which will be distributed at the time of the conference. WPH is approved by the American Psychological Association to offer continuing education for psychologists. WPH maintains responsibility for this program and its contents. This program is being offered for 1.5 continuing education credits. The indicated number of clock hours of continuing education is provided through UPMC Western Psychiatric Hospital’s Office of Educational Resources and Planning, a PA-approved provider of social work continuing education in accordance with all the applicable educational and professional standards of the Pennsylvania State Board of Social Workers, Marriage and Family Therapist. These clock hours satisfy requirements for LSW/LCSW, LPC and LMFT renewal. For more information, call (412) 204-9085.
