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Lab Senior Scientist (Equivalent to Research Associate Professor), Department of Psychiatry reeteka@gmail.com Twitter | LinkedIn ORCID ID: 0000-0002-7866-6983 Resilience and representation in research: In conversation with Reeteka Sud Stress primes brain hub to trigger freezing for unrelated fears Back Back to People Page Back Co-Investigator Team Stem Cell Research Dr Reeteka Sud Lab Senior Scientist (Equivalent to Research Associate Professor), Department of Psychiatry CBM How can patient-derived stem cells help connect the dots, from genomic risk to clinical diagnosis -- this is the unifying research theme for my various projects. My expertise lies broadly at the intersection of Genetics, Neuroscience and Psychiatry. I head the CBM Biorepository at NIMHANS, where we bank biospecimen from psychiatric patients, including stem cells, DNA, plasma and serum. I am also very passionate about scicomm/public outreach on mental health conditions Select Publications 2026 PrecInNor: An Indo-Norway collaborative programme for precision psychiatry training | Asian J Psychiatry 2025 Defining suicidality phenotypes for genetic studies: perspectives of the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium Suicide Working Group | Molecular Psychiatry The Psychiatric Genomics Consortium: discoveries and directions | Lancet Psychiatry The measurement of agitation in neurocognitive disorders: A systematic review | Alzheimer's & Dementia 2024 Exploring Mental Health Stima in the context of Psychiatric Genetics: Insights from the ISPG Stigma Reduction SIG Survey The STEM Arena in India: A Story of Exclusion in Many Colors Altered neuroepithelial morphogenesis and migration defects in iPSC-derived cerebral organoids and 2D neural stem cells in familial bipolar disorder | Oxford Open Neurosci Projects Deciphering the molecular mechanisms of treatment-resistant schizophrenia and clozapine response: To understand the genomic and cellular predictors of treatment-resistant schizophrenia (TRS) and clozapine response using genome-wide association study (GWAS) and induced pluripotent stem cells (IPSC): Here our aim is to: Identify genomic factors underlying TRS and clozapine response Elucidate cellular mechanisms of TRS and clozapine response in IPSC-derived organoids Evaluate the translational utility of these genetic/cellular markers as predictors of TRS and clozapine response using existing prospective cohorts (Funding from PGRN, BFI Foundation) Subcellular Dynamics in Neuropsychiatric Disorders: Our recent work highlights the manifold ways in which sub-cellular organelles may be driving disease pathogenesis. We discovered connections between APOE genotype and ribosome biogenesis, which could be significant for ADRD pathogenesis, and is currently under investigation. We are also using techniques like ExM to study how cytoskeletal structures mediate the workings of antipsychotic drugs, and by extension, be affected in psychotic disorders. (Funding from Ben Barres Award, Axilor Labs) Key Research Outputs (C) Direction of migration. C1-C3 cells migrated in a relatively directional pattern. B1 and B2 cells, however, migrated in a random, non-directed manner. Both BD lines showed back-and-forth movement, and directional and circular patterns of migration. (D) Sample migratory paths of control and patient-derived lines over 15 h. Abnormalities in the migration of neural precursor cells in familial bipolar disorder The trajectories of migrating neural precursors lay the foundations of the developing central nervous system. Here we demonstrate identifiable cellular abnormalities in NPCs derived from BD patients. The BD patients in this study were chosen from a dense family, who had multiple rare damaging variants implicated in cellular migration, and had structural abnormalities noted on brain MRI scans ( Fig. 1 A). Cellular migration analysis showed that although patient-derived NPCs showed a random trajectory, the NPCs from healthy controls migrated towards other cells (directed/ballistic movement) ( Fig. 1 C-D). Integration of deep clinical phenotyping with investigations into cellular mechanisms in patient-derived IPSCs, as reported here, can provide much-needed comprehensive understanding of psychiatric disorders. Cell cycle abnormality is a cellular phenotype in OCD A critical and yet unanswered question in Psychiatry is how might clinical phenotypes manifest in terms of cellular readouts. This study was conducted to determine differences in cell cycle in patient-derived cells vs controls A) Illustrates the placement of Indian samples between European and East Asian clusters, highlighting notable regional variability. Asian PCA with HGDP samples. B) Presents a north-south ancestral gradient, correlated with latitude. SVM predictions. C) Decile-based risk stratification in BD A cross ancestry genetic study of psychiatric disorders from India We estimated the extent of population stratification as well as the predictive accuracy of polygenic scores (PGS) derived from European samples to a data set from India. Our analyses reveal global and continental PCA overlap with other South Asian populations. Admixture analysis revealed a north-south genetic axis within India (FST 1.6%). The Bayesian PGS analyses indicates moderate-to-high predictive power for BD.

Associate Professor, Department of Human Genetics gautham.arunachal@gmail.com Back Back to People Page Back Co-Investigator Team Dr Gautam Arunachal Udupi Associate Professor, Department of Human Genetics

Professor, Department of Psychiatry sivakumar.nimhans@gmail.com LinkedIn | Google Scholar Back Back to People Page Back Co-Investigator Team Dementia Dr P T Sivakumar Professor, Department of Psychiatry

Assistant Professor, Department of Clinical Psychopharmacology and Neurotoxicology swarnabuddha_nayok@yahoo.co.in ORCID ID: 0000-0002-3173-4248 Back Back to People Page Back Clinical Team Dr Swarna Buddha Nayok Assistant Professor, Department of Clinical Psychopharmacology and Neurotoxicology Swarna Buddha Nayok has completed DPM & MD in Psychiatry, and done Ph.D. in Clinical Neuroscience (submitted). His fields of interest are severe mental illness, media & psychiatry

Research Technician arulmozhibalakrishnan97@gmail.com Back Back to People Page Back Lab Team, Doctoral Candidate Arulmozhi Balakrishnan Research Technician CBM, A-BIG-NET

Project Associate reachoutamirtha@gmail.com LinkedIn Back Back to People Page Back Lab Team, Doctoral Candidate Amirtha Varshini Project Associate CBM, A-BIG-NET Amirtha Varshini is a Project Associate at the Centre for Brain and Mind. She has a Master's degree in Biochemistry. You can find her lost in a good book or humming her favourite tunes when she's not in the lab.

Research Technician soumyaharapanahlli26@gmail.com Back Back to People Page Back Lab Team Soumya Sathish Harapanahalli Research Technician CBM

Junior Research Fellow (Centre for Brain Mapping) joycegodinho25.jg@gmail.com LinkedIn Back Back to People Page Back MRI/EEG Team, Doctoral Candidate Joyce Godinho Junior Research Fellow (Centre for Brain Mapping) CBM Joyce Godinho is a Junior Research Fellow at the Centre for Brain and Mind. She is passionate about understanding the intricacies of the human brain and its impact on cognition, behaviour, and rehabilitation. She holds a Master's degree(MSc.) in Neuropsychology from the National Forensic Sciences University(NFSU), with extensive experience in EEG and Event-Related Potential (ERP) analysis. Her research delves into the neural mechanisms driving sports performance. She explored how cognitive processes shape decision-making, attention, and motor control in athletes, including Indian national level kabaddi players.

Junior Research Fellow (Neuroimaging - ADBS Data Centre) deepankan.chy34@gmail.com LinkedIn Back Back to People Page Back MRI/EEG Team, Doctoral Candidate Deepankan Chakarborty Junior Research Fellow (Neuroimaging - ADBS Data Centre) CBM Deepankan, a junior research fellow at the Center for Brain and Mind, holds a master's degree in Cognitive Neuroscience. He possesses expertise in crafting a portable AI-driven device for detecting epileptiform discharges. With four years of experience acquiring and analyzing EEG data, he has transitioned his focus to exploring FMRI. Beyond his professional pursuits, Deepankan enjoys exploring the realms of arts, literature, poetry and anime.

Professor and Head, Department of Mental Health Education meenaksiyer@gmail.com Back Back to People Page Back Co-Investigator Team Dr K S Meena Professor and Head, Department of Mental Health Education

Project Associate dineshbabuparamasivam@gmail.com Back Back to People Page Back Clinical Team Dineshbabu P Project Associate CBM, A-BIG-NET Psychiatric Social Worker at the Centre for Brain and Mind (CBM), with extensive experience in clinical psychosocial assessments and longitudinal mental health research. I work closely with diverse clinical populations across disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, addiction, and OCD, with a focus on understanding psychosocial factors, illness trajectories, and functional outcomes over time. My role integrates clinical practice and research within a multidisciplinary setting, providing a rich and continuous learning experience.

Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry vkkg24@gmail.com Google Scholar Back Back to People Page Back Co-Investigator Team Dr Vijay Kumar K G Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry