Yale University · BiologyDietrich Lab
Marcelo Dietrich · New Haven, Connecticut
Research Focus
Dr. Marcelo Dietrich's lab at Yale University studies how the early interactions between mothers and infants shape brain development and social behavior. They focus on understanding specific neuron types that influence these interactions and the impacts of early life adversity, like childhood maltreatment, on long-term mental health. By investigating these neural systems in mice, the lab aims to uncover insights that could enhance developmental outcomes and help address social and psychological disorders.
infant social behaviormaternal interactionneural circuitschildhood adversityopioid systembehavioral analysisneuron activationdevelopmental psychology
Research Aims
3AIM 01Elucidate the role of specific neurons in responding to maternal presence in infant mice.
AIM 02Map the neural circuits involved in infant social behaviors and learning processes.
AIM 03Investigate how early life adversity affects the opioid signaling system and subsequent social behaviors in childhood.
Skills the Lab Values
fiber photometryelectrophysiologymouse modelsbehavioral assayswhole-brain mappingultrasonic vocalization trackingneuronal manipulationdata analysissocial behavior assessment
Output against the department
Publications103bottom 36% of dept.662nd of 1,033
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations10ktop 38% of dept.389th of 1,033
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.