Vadim Bolshakov

Vadim Bolshakov is a Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School and Director of the Cellular Neurobiology Laboratory at McLean Hospital. His research focuses on cellular and molecular mechanisms of learned and innate fear-related behaviors, utilizing electrophysiology, optogenetics, and genetic models to study synaptic plasticity in amygdala circuits.

Education:

• 1982 BS, Tomsk University, Russia
• 1987 PhD, Sechenov Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences
• 1993-1999 Post-Doctoral Fellowship, Columbia University

Key research areas include fear conditioning, anxiety disorders, synaptic plasticity, and genetic regulation of neural circuits. Recent work highlights how mPFC-amygdala interactions govern fear extinction and identifies genes controlling synaptic proteins in PTSD and schizophrenia models.

His publications (2013-2020) emphasize synaptic mechanisms in fear circuits, optogenetic modulation of anxiety, and pathway-specific plasticity in emotional memory. Collaborations span institutions including Boston Children’s Hospital and University of Illinois.

Lab Members:

• Current: Xin Deng (Research Fellow), Yan Li (Assistant Research Physiologist), Yunona Manasian (Lab Manager)
• Former: Keith Tully (PhD), Evgeny Tsvetkov (Post-Doctoral Associate)