Schizophrenia Treatment and Research Laboratory (STAR)

Welcome to the Schizophrenia Treatment and Research Laboratory

The URMC Department of Psychiatry has a long and distinguished history of innovation related to understanding and treatment of people with schizophrenia and related disorders. Early landmarks include development of one of the nation’s first public-academic liaisons under founding chair Dr. John Romano, groundbreaking family research under Dr. Lyman Wynne, and the innovative Monroe-Livingston Demonstration Project under Dr. Haroutun Babigian.

Strong Ties Community Support Program was developed during the1990’s under Dr. Eric D. Caine as a springboard for study and treatment of adults with severe and persistent mental disorders. Under leadership of Drs. Marvin Herz and J. Steven Lamberti, Strong Ties became a primary site for studies examining novel psychopharmacological and psychosocial treatment strategies. As part of the national Schizophrenia Trials Network during the early 2000’s, Dr. Lamberti and his colleagues conducted several important clinical trials, including the NIMH CATIE, ACLAIMS, CAMP and e-CAESAR studies.

In 2019, internationally recognized schizophrenia researcher Dr. Steven Silverstein joined the URMC Department of Psychiatry along with fellow researchers Dr. Judy Thompson and Dr. Brian Keane. Under Dr. Silverstein’s leadership as STAR lab director, new initiatives feature both national and international collaborations with a continued purpose; to improve the lives of people with schizophrenia and their families through generation and dissemination of new knowledge.

View the latest issue of NeURoscience highlighting the work of Dr. Silverstein, Dr. Thompson and Dr. Keane.

Current STAR Projects

Interested in Participating in our Research?

STAR Lab Faculty

Steven Silverstein, PhD
Professor, Psychiatry

J. Steven Lamberti, MD
Professor, Psychiatry

Robert L. Weisman, DO
Professor, Psychiatry

Annabel Fu, MD
Assistant Professor, Psychiatry

Telva Olivares, MD
Clinical Professor, Psychiatry

Brian Keane, PhD
Assistant Professor, Psychiatry

Diane S. Morse, MD
Associate Professor, Psychiatry

William Small, MD
Senior Instructor, Psychiatry

Judy Thompson, PhD
Assistant Professor, Psychiatry

STAR Lab Staff

Lyvia Bertolace, MD
Human Subject Research Coordinator, Psychiatry

Brittany A. Blose, MS
Human Subject Research Coordinator, Psychiatry

Tamara Bilinski, MA
Health Project Coordinator, Psychiatry

David Jacobowitz, MA
Health Project Coordinator, Psychiatry

Iwona Juskiewicz, MD, MPH
Health Project Coordinator, Psychiatry

Arjun Byju
Research Assistant, Psychiatry

Michelle (Mia) Young
Research Assistant, Psychiatry

Samantha Fradkin
Graduate Student, Clinical Psychology

Collaborating Faculty

David Dodell-Feder, PhD
Assistant Professor, Clinical and Social Sciences in Psychology

Susanne Miedlich, MD
Assistant Professor, Division of Endocrine and Metabolism, Department of Medicine

Geoffrey C. Williams, MD
PhD, Professor, Department of Medicine, Department of Clinical and Social Sciences in Psychology

Marsha Wittink, MD, MBE
Associate Professor, Departments of Family Medicine and Psychiatry

Catherine Cerulli, JD, PhD
Professor, Department of Psychiatry

Affiliations

Psychiatry

Recent STAR Publications

Lamberti JS, Weisman RL. Essential elements of forensic assertive community treatment. Harvard Review of Psychiatry, published ahead of print on May 21, 2021.
https://doi.org/10.1097/hrp.0000000000000299
Silverstein SM, Thompson JL, Gold JM, Schiffman J, Waltz JA, Williams TF, Zinbarg RE, Mittal VA, Ellman LM, Strauss GP, Walker EF, Woods SW, Levin JA, Kafadar E, Kenney J, Smith D, Powers AR, Corlett PR. Increased face detection responses on the Mooney Faces Test in people at clinical high risk for psychosis. NPJ Schizophr. 2021 May 17;7(1):26.
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41537-021-00156-1
Silverstein SM, Keane BP, Corlett PR. Oculomics in Schizophrenia Research. Schizophr Bull. 2021 Apr 29;47(3):577-579. PMID: 33606022; PMCID: PMC8084449.
https://doi.org/10.1093/schbul/sbab011
Silverstein SM, Thompson JL, Gold JM, Schiffman J, Waltz JA, Williams TF, Zinbarg RE, Mittal VA, Ellman LM, Strauss GP, Walker EF, Woods SW, Levin JA, Kafadar E, Kenney J, Smith D, Powers AR, Corlett PR. Increased face detection responses on the Mooney Faces Test in people at clinical high risk for psychosis. NPJ Schizophr. 2021 May 17;7(1):26.
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41537-021-00156-1
Silverstein SM, Keane BP, Corlett PR. Oculomics in Schizophrenia Research. Schizophr Bull. 2021 Apr 29;47(3):577-579. PMID: 33606022; PMCID: PMC8084449.
https://doi.org/10.1093/schbul/sbab011
Guterman Y, Ataria Y, Silverstein SM. The Imbalanced Plasticity Hypothesis of Schizophrenia-Related Psychosis: A Predictive Perspective. Cogn Affect Behav Neurosci. 2021 May 28. Online ahead of print. PMID: 34050524 Review.
https://doi.org/10.3758/s13415-021-00911-y
Silverstein SM, Thompson JL, Gold JM, Schiffman J, Waltz JA, Williams TF, Zinbarg RE, Mittal VA, Ellman LM, Strauss GP, Walker EF, Woods SW, Levin JA, Kafadar E, Kenney J, Smith D, Powers AR, Corlett PR. Increased face detection responses on the Mooney Faces Test in people at clinical high risk for psychosis. NPJ Schizophr. 2021 May 17;7(1):26.
doi: 10.1038/s41537-021-00156-1.
Silverstein SM, Keane BP, Corlett PR. Oculomics in Schizophrenia Research. Schizophr Bull. 2021 Apr 29;47(3):577-579. PMID: 33606022; PMCID: PMC8084449.
https://doi.org/10.1093/schbul/sbab011
Beaudette DM, Gold JM, Waltz J, Thompson JL, Cherneski L, Martin V, Monteiro B, Cruz LN, Silverstein SM.Predicting Attention-Shaping Response in People With Schizophrenia.
J Nerv Ment Dis. 2021 Mar 1;209(3):203-207. PMID: 33315800.
doi: 10.1097/NMD.0000000000001286.
Lamberti JS, Katsetos V, Jacobowitz D, Weisman RL. Psychosis, mania and criminal recidivism: Associations and implications for prevention. Harvard Review of Psychiatry, 28:179-202, 2020.
https://doi.org/10.1097/HRP.0000000000000251
Perlis LT, Lamberti JS, Miedlich SU. GLP Analogues are superior for diabetes and weight control in patients on antipsychotic medications – A retrospective cohort study. The Primary Care Companion for CNS Disorders. 22(1), 2020.
Lamberti JS, Weisman RL. Meeting the needs of justice-involved people with serious mental illness. Psychiatric Services, 71:875-876, 2020.
https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.71801
Maeng D, Tsun ZY, Lesch E, Jacobowitz D, Strawderman RL, Harrington D, Li Y, Weisman RL, Lamberti JS. Cost-effectiveness of the Rochester forensic assertive community treatment model (Under Review; Frontiers in Psychiatry).
Silverstein SM, Seitz AR, Ahmed AO, Thompson JL, Zemon V, Gara M, Butler PD. Development and Evaluation of a Visual Remediation Intervention for People with Schizophrenia. J Psychiatr Brain Sci. 2020;5:e200017. Epub 2020 Jul 20. PMID: 32789191; PMCID: PMC7418924.
https://doi.org/10.20900/jpbs.20200017
Demmin DL, Silverstein SM. Visual Impairment and Mental Health: Unmet Needs and Treatment Options. Clin Ophthalmol. 2020 Dec 3;14:4229-4251. eCollection 2020. PMID: 33299297.
https://doi.org/10.2147/OPTH.S258783
Lai A, Crosta C, Loftin M, Silverstein SM. Retinal structural alterations in first episode vs. chronic schizophrenia. Biomarkers in Neuropsychiatry, 2020, 2, 100013.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bionps.2020.100013
Brink M, Green A, Bojesen AB, Lamberti JS, Conwell Y, Andersen K. Excess medical comorbidity and mortality across the lifespan in schizophrenia. A nationwide Danish register study. Schizophrenia Research, 206:347 – 354, 2019 Apr.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.schres.2018.10.020
Mahncke HW, Kim S, Rose A, Stasio C, Buckley P, Caroff S, Duncan E, Yasmin S, Jarskog LF, Lamberti JS, Nuechterlein K, Strassnig M, Velligan D, Ventura J, Walker T, Stroup TS. Evaluation of a plasticity-based cognitive training program in schizophrenia: Results from the eCaesar trial Schizophrenia research. 2019 Jun 1;208:182-9.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.schres.2019.03.006
Haselden M, Corbeil T, Fei T, Olfson M, Dixon LB, Essock SM, Wall MM, Radigan M, Frimpong E, Wang R, Lamberti JS, Schneider M, Smith TE. Family involvement in psychiatric hospitalizations: associations with discharge planning and prompt follow-up care. Psychiatric Services. 2019 Oct 1;70(10):860-6.
https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.201900028
Keane BP, Paterno D, Kastner S, Krekelberg B, Silverstein SM. Intact illusory contour formation but equivalently impaired visual shape completion in first-and later-episode schizophrenia. Journal of abnormal psychology. 2019 Jan;128(1):57.
https://doi.org/10.1037/abn0000384
Martina A, Justin E, Lamberti JS. A case report of clozapine-associated agranulocytosis managed with lithium (In Press: Schizophrenia Research).
Smith TE, Haselden M, Corbeil T, Tang F, Radigan M, Essock SM, Wall MM, Dixon LB, Wang R, Frimpong E, Lamberti S, Schneider M, Olfson M: Continuity of care and discharge planning for hospital psychiatric admissions (In Press: Psychiatric Services).
https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.202000021
Fan Y, Ma N, Ma L, Xu W, Lamberti JS, Caine ED. A community-based peer support service for persons with severe mental illness in China. BMC Psychiatry, 18:170, 2018 Jun 4.
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12888-018-1763-2

Contact Us

Schizophrenia Treatment and Research Laboratory (STAR)
Steven M. Silverstein, PhD
University of Rochester Medical Center
300 Crittenden Boulevard
Rochester, NY, 1464
Steven_Silverstein@URMC.Rochester.edu
Phone: (585) 275-6742

Open Research Lab positions

Human Subjects Research Coordinator