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Welcome to the ZVR Lab

Our lab uses virtual reality (VR), multimodal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and machine learning to try to elucidate the psychological and neural signatures of PTSD and anxiety disorders. Particularly, to delineate the contextual aspect of threat and reward learning, discrimination, and monitoring.

Specifically, we are interested in cases where an area within a larger environment becomes associated with threat, such as the area of a neighborhood where an assault or assaults took place, or the location on a battlefield where explosions occurred.

Patients with PTSD and anxiety disorders often show an overgeneralization or an exaggerated response to threat in larger contexts, even in environments predicting safety. With this research, we expect to identify new brain measures to develop sensitive, personalized, and precise diagnostic and treatment tools for psychopathology. 

Lab Members

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Benjamin Suarez-Jimenez, Ph.D.

Benjamin Suarez-Jimenez, Ph.D.
Principal Investigator

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Publications

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View All Publications

Affiliations

    1. Steele N
    2. Hussain A
    3. Sun D
    4. Baird CL
    5. Russell C
    6. Jahanshad N
    7. Salminen LE
    8. Olff M
    9. Frijling JL
    10. Veltman DJ
    11. Koch SBJ
    12. Nawijn L
    13. van Zuiden M
    14. Wang L
    15. Zhu Y
    16. Li G
    17. Stein DJ
    18. Ipser J
    19. Koopowitz S
    20. Neria Y
    21. Zhu X
    22. Ravid O
    23. Zilcha-Mano S
    24. Lazarov A
    25. Suarez-Jimenez B
    26. Huggins AA
    27. Stevens J
    28. Ressler K
    29. Jovanovic T
    30. van Rooij SJH
    31. Fani N
    32. Dennis EL
    33. Tate DF
    34. Cifu DX
    35. Walker WC
    36. Wilde EA
    37. Rektor I
    38. Říha P
    39. Kaufman ML
    40. Lebois LAM
    41. Baker JT
    42. King A
    43. Liberzon I
    44. Angstadt M
    45. Davenport ND
    46. Disner SG
    47. Sponheim SR
    48. Straube T
    49. Hofmann D
    50. Lu GM
    51. Qi R
    52. Etkin A
    53. Maron-Katz A
    54. Wang X
    55. Kunch A
    56. Xie H
    57. Quidé Y
    58. El-Hage W
    59. Lissek S
    60. Berg H
    61. Bruce SE
    62. Cisler J
    63. Ross M
    64. Herringa R
    65. Grupe DW
    66. Nitschke JB
    67. Davidson RJ
    68. Larson C
    69. deRoon-Cassini TA
    70. Tomas CW
    71. Fitzgerald JM
    72. Feola B
    73. Blackford JU
    74. Olatunji BO
    75. May G
    76. Nelson SM
    77. Gordon EM
    78. Abdallah CG
    79. Lanius R
    80. Densmore M
    81. Théberge J
    82. Neufeld RWJ
    83. Thompson PM
    84. Morey RA
    Disrupted intrathalamic and thalamocortical structural covariance networks in posttraumatic stress disorder.; Network neuroscience (Cambridge, Mass.); Vol 10(1), pp. 244-266. 2026 Mar 20.
    1. Wang HR
    2. Liu ZQ
    3. Pozzi E
    4. Hussain A
    5. Sigar P
    6. Abdallah C
    7. Alexander N
    8. Baker J
    9. Bauer J
    10. Blackford JU
    11. Cisler J
    12. Connolly CG
    13. Cotton A
    14. Daniels J
    15. Dannlowski U
    16. Densmore M
    17. deRoon-Cassini T
    18. Dima D
    19. Du Plessis S
    20. Etkin A
    21. Fani N
    22. Fisch L
    23. Fitzgerald J
    24. Frodl T
    25. Fu CHY
    26. Gonul AS
    27. Gordon EM
    28. Gotlib I
    29. Goya-Maldonado R
    30. Groenewold NA
    31. Grotegerd D
    32. Hahn T
    33. Hamilton JP
    34. Han L
    35. Harpaz-Rotem I
    36. Haswell CC
    37. Herringa R
    38. Herzog J
    39. Ipser J
    40. Jahanshad N
    41. Jovanovic T
    42. Kaufman M
    43. Kircher T
    44. Konowski M
    45. Koopowitz SM
    46. Krug A
    47. Krystal J
    48. Lanius R
    49. Larson C
    50. Lazarov A
    51. Lebois L
    52. Leehr E
    53. Levy I
    54. Li M
    55. Manthey A
    56. Maron-Katz A
    57. McIntosh A
    58. McLaughlin K
    59. Meinert S
    60. Mwangi B
    61. Nelson SM
    62. Nenadić I
    63. Neria Y
    64. Neufeld R
    65. Ojha A
    66. Olatunji B
    67. Olson EA
    68. Opel N
    69. Peverill M
    70. Ressler K
    71. Ross M
    72. Rosso I
    73. Sacchet M
    74. Sambrook K
    75. Schmahl C
    76. Seedat S
    77. Shenton ME
    78. Sicorello M
    79. Sierk A
    80. Soares JC
    81. Stein DJ
    82. Stein F
    83. Stein MB
    84. Suarez-Jimenez B
    85. Théberge J
    86. Thomopoulos SI
    87. Tomas C
    88. Usemann P
    89. van den Heuvel LL
    90. van Rooij S
    91. Walter H
    92. Walter M
    93. Wang X
    94. Whalley H
    95. Winter NR
    96. Wu MJ
    97. Xie H
    98. Yang T
    99. Zhu X
    100. Zilcha-Mano S
    101. Zunta-Soares GB
    102. Frangou S
    103. Thompson PM
    104. Salminen L
    105. Sun D
    106. Morey R
    107. Stevens JS
    108. Schmaal L
    109. Ho TC
    Childhood Maltreatment and Deviations from Normative Brain Structure: A Mega-Analysis of 3,711 Individuals from the ENIGMA MDD and ENIGMA PTSD Working Groups.; Biological psychiatry. 2026 Mar 04.
    1. Han LKM
    2. Bruin WB
    3. Bas-Hoogendam JM
    4. Groenewold NA
    5. Hilbert K
    6. Winkler AM
    7. Zugman A
    8. Asami T
    9. Barber JP
    10. Benedetti F
    11. Blair RJR
    12. Böhnlein J
    13. Brambilla P
    14. Breuer F
    15. Buckner RL
    16. Bülow R
    17. Calkins ME
    18. Chechko N
    19. Dannlowski U
    20. Dohm K
    21. Domschke K
    22. Dresler T
    23. Erhardt-Lehmann A
    24. Fonzo GA
    25. Forstner AJ
    26. Grabe HJ
    27. Grotegerd D
    28. Gur RE
    29. Gur RC
    30. Harmer C
    31. Hofmann D
    32. van den Heuvel OA
    33. Jahanshad N
    34. Kircher TTJ
    35. Koch K
    36. Laansma MA
    37. Langhammer T
    38. Lee SH
    39. Leehr EJ
    40. Maggioni E
    41. Marino CE
    42. Meinert S
    43. Meinert H
    44. Milrod B
    45. Mwangi B
    46. Nielsen JA
    47. Ohrmann P
    48. Pantazatos SP
    49. Paulus MP
    50. Penninx BWJH
    51. Poletti S
    52. Reinecke A
    53. Ridderbusch IC
    54. Rjabtsenkov P
    55. Sämann PG
    56. Satterthwaite TD
    57. Schmaal L
    58. Schrammen E
    59. Soares JC
    60. Solomonov N
    61. Stein MB
    62. Straube B
    63. Straube T
    64. Suarez-Jimenez B
    65. Smoller JW
    66. Talati A
    67. Thomopoulos SI
    68. Vazquez CE
    69. Völzke H
    70. Wittfeld K
    71. Wu MJ
    72. Yang Y
    73. Zunta Soares GB
    74. Lueken U
    75. Thompson PM
    76. Pine DS
    77. Stein DJ
    78. van der Wee NJA
    79. Veltman DJ
    80. Aghajani M
    Structural brain differences associated with panic disorder: an ENIGMA-Anxiety Working Group mega-analysis of 4924 individuals worldwide.; Molecular psychiatry. 2026 Jan 13.
    1. Hussain A
    2. Baird CL
    3. Huggins AA
    4. Russell CC
    5. Sun D
    6. Rangel-Jimenez L
    7. Abdallah CG
    8. Angstadt M
    9. May G
    10. Berg H
    11. Blackford JU
    12. Cisler J
    13. Daniels JK
    14. Davenport ND
    15. Davidson RJ
    16. Densmore M
    17. Disner SG
    18. El-Hage W
    19. Etkin A
    20. Fani N
    21. Frijling JL
    22. Gordon EM
    23. Grupe DW
    24. Herringa RA
    25. Herzog JI
    26. Hofmann D
    27. Hudson AR
    28. Jovanovic T
    29. King A
    30. Koch SBJ
    31. Lanius RA
    32. Lazarov A
    33. Li G
    34. Liberzon I
    35. Lissek S
    36. Lu G
    37. Manthey A
    38. Maron-Katz A
    39. McLaughlin KA
    40. Mueller SC
    41. Nawijn L
    42. Nelson SM
    43. Neria Y
    44. Neufeld RWJ
    45. Nitschke JB
    46. Olatunji BO
    47. Olff M
    48. Peverill M
    49. Qi R
    50. Quidé Y
    51. Ravid O
    52. Rektor I
    53. Ressler KJ
    54. Říha P
    55. Ross M
    56. Sambrook K
    57. Schmahl C
    58. Sierk A
    59. Sponheim SR
    60. Stevens JS
    61. Straube T
    62. Suarez-Jimenez B
    63. Théberge J
    64. van der Wee NJA
    65. van der Werff SJA
    66. van Rooij SJH
    67. van Zuiden M
    68. Veltman DJ
    69. Vermeiren RRJM
    70. Walter H
    71. Wang L
    72. Zhu X
    73. Zhu Y
    74. Zilcha-Mano S
    75. Jahanshad N
    76. Thompson PM
    77. Morey RA
    Lower Gyrification of the Ventromedial Prefrontal Cortex in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: An ENIGMA-PTSD Study.; Biological psychiatry global open science; Vol 6(2), pp. 100679. 2025 Dec 18.

Contact Us

ZVR Lab
 Benjamin Suarez-Jimenez, Ph.D.
601 Elmwood Ave, Box 603
Medical Center Annex
Offices: 2B-210, 2B-202
Rochester, NY 14642

Office: 2B210 - (585) 275-6866

Office: 2B202 - (585) 275-7103

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Funding Sources