معرفی
Dr. Helen Fox is a Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Yale School of Medicine, conducting research at the Yale Stress Center and affiliated with the Connecticut Mental Health Center Division of Addictions. Her work focuses on understanding the mechanisms underlying addiction and developing pharmacological interventions for substance use disorders.
Dr. Fox received her PhD from the University of East London in 2002 and a BS in Psychology from the University of Portsmouth in 1996. She began her doctoral career examining cognitive neuropsychological profiles of ecstasy club drug users and later came to Yale as a postdoctoral fellow working with Dr. Rajita Sinha to establish cognitive, neuroendocrine, and biophysiological mechanisms underpinning drug craving in cocaine-dependent and alcohol-dependent individuals.
Her research focuses on the intersection of stress physiology, immune function, and addiction mechanisms, with particular expertise in gender differences in addiction and treatment response. Dr. Fox investigates pharmacotherapy interventions for cognition and immune system changes in addiction, with significant emphasis on women's health issues related to polysubstance use disorders. Her work often examines how traumatic events, chronic pain, and stress system mechanisms contribute to substance use patterns.
- K-01 career development award (2010) to study guanfacine HCl effects on cognitive processes and relapse in cocaine abusers
- R01 award assessing the role of peripheral immune system cytokines in alcohol-dependent individuals
- R03 award for dexamethasone suppression/CRH stimulation challenge procedures on alcoholics
Dr. Fox maintains an active research program with numerous collaborators including Peter Morgan, Nia Fogelman, Rajita Sinha, Stephanie Wemm, and Rachel Hart. She continues her international collaboration with the University of East London, examining stress and immune system markers in club drug users consuming novel psychoactive substances including synthetic marijuana and synthetic cathinone derivatives. Her research has significant clinical implications for developing targeted treatments for substance use disorders, particularly those addressing stress pathways and cognitive processes in addiction.