Stay updated with our lab’s latest breakthroughs, events, and insights. This space is dedicated to sharing progress, research developments, and stories that shape our scientific journey.
The lab has moved to McLean Hospital!
December 8, 2025
The lab has moved! We are now located in the Division of Depression and Anxiety Disorders at McLean Hospital in Belmont, MA. We are excited to join this exciting community and look forward to many new collaborations!
Graduate Research Assistant Dailin Luo Defends Master’s Thesis on Prenatal Alcohol Exposure and Mental Health
We’re proud to celebrate Dailin Luo, our graduate research assistant, for successfully defending her Master’s thesis, “Prenatal Alcohol Exposure and Mental Health Outcomes,” at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Her dedication and meaningful contributions have our research on how early exposures shape developmental and mental health trajectories. Congratulations, Dailin!
Exploring the Role of DNA Methylation in Childhood Adversity and Depression
We are excited to announce that Dr. Alexandre Lussier’s important research, done in collaboration with the Dunn Lab, has been featured in Nature Mental Health. This study explores how DNA methylation, a process that affects the way our genes work, can help explain how childhood adversity (like abuse or neglect) increases the risk of depression. It also identifies how some people may have built-in resilience that helps them overcome challenges….Read More
Data Analyst Toby Law Presents at MGH’s Celebration of Science on Predicting Depressive Symptoms through DNA Methylation
April 12, 2025
Our lab’s data analyst, Toby Law, recently shared her findings at MGH’s Celebration of Science, where she presented a poster on how DNA methylation profile scores of time-varying childhood adversity can predict depressive symptoms. We are proud of Toby’s contribution to our lab’s research and the important connections she is helping to uncover between early adversity and mental health outcomes.
Today is Thank Your Mentor Day, and we’re proud to honor our leader, Dr. Alexandre Lussier!
January 14, 2025
Dr. Lussier’s mentorship has been a cornerstone of our success at the Lussier Lab. His commitment to our research and professional growth continues to inspire us every day. Through his guidance, we have gained invaluable insights, developed our skills, and contributed to groundbreaking work in the field of mental health and epigenetics. We are incredibly grateful for his leadership, vision, and dedication, and we are fortunate to have him as a mentor. Here’s to many more years of learning, discovery, and collaboration under his guidance.
Happy Holidays from the Lussier and Dunn Labs
December 20, 2024
The Lussier and Erin Dunn Labs celebrated the holiday season with a fantastic event at the Liberty Hotel in Boston, hosted by the MGH Center for Genomic Medicine. As we reflect on another year of meaningful research and collaboration, we look forward to the exciting opportunities and discoveries the new year will bring. Wishing everyone a joyful holiday season and a successful year ahead!
Dr. Lussier Presents Research on Childhood Adversity and DNA Methylation at WCPG 2024
November 27, 2024
We’re excited to share that Dr. Lussier recently presented at WCPG 2024 in Singapore, highlighting research on how adversity, particularly between ages 5-7, alters DNA methylation patterns and increases the risk of future mental health issues. Our findings focused on specific types of adversity, (i.e., maternal psychopathology & financial stress) and demonstrate how DNA methylation risk scores can predict these outcomes.
What are Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD)?
Our Co-op Intern, Emma Kohrt, wrote about how prenatal alcohol exposure poses considerable risks to the physical, behavioral, and cognitive health of children. Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) are an assortment of serious conditions that occur due to alcohol exposure in pregnancy and can persist throughout the lifetime. FASD is one of the leading causes of developmental disabilities and birth…Read More
Dr. Lussier’s MQ Fellows Award Interview
Dr. Alexandre Lussier was recently interviewed by the MQ Foundation, a global non-profit that invests in vital research needed to detect, prevent, and treat mental illness. Dr. Lussier was awarded a prestigious MQ Fellowship in 2023 to support his work examining the timing of depression during childhood and adolescence as a risk factor for suicide…Read More
The Lussier Lab 