Welcome back to Brain Waves! A growing body of evidence supports the positive influence of a healthy immune system on a healthy brain. Some exciting breakthroughs in this area have come from the lab of Dr. Scott Russo, 2012 One Mind / Johnson & Johnson Rising Star Awardee. Working with Dr. Georgia Hodes at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Dr. Russo has learned that inflammation, as governed by white blood cells, can lead to the symptoms of depression. He now plans to investigate how the bacteria living in our intestines can influence brain health. He is also initiating a collaboration with Johnson & Johnson Pharmaceutical to clinically test new anti-inflammatory antidepressant medications. He joins us this month to chat about his discoveries and high hopes for his research toward healing depression.

The Q&A period is now over, but you are welcome to watch the video and peruse the comments below. Many thanks to all who participated!

If you like what Dr. Russo is doing, please feel free to donate to support One Mind-funded mental health research, like Dr. Russo’s.