Psychiatry

About

We conduct impactful work on research, education, policy, and practice, to:

• enhance understanding of the causes of a range of mental health conditions.
• increase their recognition, evaluate potential novel treatments.
• promote better evidence-based treatments and care pathways.

Our principal investigators

Professor Sam Chamberlain (Head of Department)
Prof Chamberlain's main interests focus on the neurobiology and treatment of impulsive, compulsive, and behaviourally addictive disorders. He leads the MINDS-IC group. His research involves three main areas:

• developing and validating clinical tools.
• measuring cognitive problems, traits, and brain circuits that contribute (including vulnerability markers).
• improving existing treatments and developing new ones.

Prof Chamberlain founded and directs the NHS Southern Gambling Service, which provides evidence-based assessment and treatment for people affected by gambling harms across the South East of England (catchment area ~10 million people); as well as the Specialist Impulsive-Compulsive Service. He currently also leads the Applied Research Collaboration (ARC Wessex) Mental Health Research Hub.

Professor Julia Sinclair (Deputy Head of Department)
Prof Sinclair's research includes qualitative and quantitative methods to examine the impact of complex interventions on health outcomes, specifically patients with alcohol use disorder and comorbid physical and mental disorder. Current studies involve:

• leading the national evaluation of alcohol care teams and alcohol use in older adults.
• development of digital tools to embed alcohol screening in a range of health setting.
• measuring co-morbid anxiety in patients with alcohol use disorder.

Given the level of stigma enacted towards people with alcohol dependence across the health system, involving people with lived experience in all aspects of research, and getting evidence into practice is central to her work.

Professor David Baldwin (Head of Clinical Neuroscience)
Prof Baldwin leads a programme of collaborative research with the aim of improving clinical outcomes in mood and anxiety disorders. This includes:

• investigation of the neuropsychobiological basis of anxiety and depressive symptoms.
• leading randomised controlled trials designed to evaluate the efficacy of novel treatment approaches.
• identification of predictors of good and bad outcomes in secondary care mental health services.

Professor Ruihua Hou
Prof Hou's main research interests are psychoneuroimmunology in affective disorders:

• exploring interactions between the central nervous system and the immune system.
• how these affect cognitive function and behaviour, with the goal of identifying potential therapeutic targets.
• human psychopharmacology, with a special interest in neural mechanisms.
• the role of the locus coeruleus in neuropsychiatric disorders using MRI imaging technique and pupillometry, with the goal of identifying new pharmacological intervention targets.

Associate Professor Jay Amin
Dr Amin leads a research programme that aims to improve outcomes for people living with dementia. His research interests are in the role of inflammation in dementia with Lewy bodies and Alzheimer’s disease, and in testing of the diagnostic and prognostic potential of biomarkers in dementia. He is also principal investigator for several commercial and non-commercial dementia trials at the Memory Assessment and Research Centre in Southampton.

Dr Nathan Huneke
Dr Huneke's primary interests are in the mechanisms that cause anxiety and affective disorders, which he explores through research with experimental medicine models, experimental psychology and functional neuroimaging. Dr Huneke is also interested in understanding the mechanisms of the placebo and nocebo responses across mental disorders, which he explores through behavioural experiments and through evidence synthesis of randomised-controlled trials in psychiatry.

Affiliated principal investigators

Professor Samuele Cortese (NIHR Research Professor)
Prof Cortese's main research interests are around neurodevelopmental disorders, with a focus on ADHD, and sleep disorders. In his research, Prof Cortese uses advanced evidence synthesis methods, large datasets and randomised-controlled trials to inform decision-making in clinical practice.

Associate Professor Valeria Parlatini
Dr Valeria Parlatini leads research investigating predictors of mental health outcomes to personalise and enhance clinical care, especially for children and adults with ADHD. This includes the use of advanced imaging techniques to explore biological mechanisms underlying variability in treatment response, conducting epidemiological studies using healthcare records, and synthesising evidence to guide both research and clinical practice. Her research is increasingly clinically focused, involving the development of digital tools for ADHD management and advanced strategies for personalised treatment selection.