School Notes: School of Medicine
March/April 2025

NIH grant will fund study on schizophrenia detection

Two Yale School of Medicine scientists have been awarded a five-year, $76 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for their project titled “ProCAN: Psychosis-Risk Outcomes Compound Assessment Network,” as part of the Accelerated Medicines Partnership—Schizophrenia (AMP SCZ). 

Scott W. Woods, Elizabeth Mears and House Jameson Professor of Psychiatry, and Youngsun T. Cho, assistant professor of psychiatry and in the Child Study Center, will lead the five-year study in collaboration with investigators from 17 other research sites. The Yale network will evaluate identified drug compounds for their potential to detect a signal on one or more biological, digital, cognitive, or clinical outcome measures in individuals at clinical high risk for psychosis, and generate novel insights to prevent the onset of schizophrenia and other psychoses. This project builds on a prior 28-site, five-year AMP SCZ observational study for which Woods also served as contact principal investigator.

Yale weight loss center one of the best

The Yale Center for Weight Management has been named one of Newsweek’s America’s Best Weight Loss Clinics and Centers for 2025, standing out as the only facility in Connecticut and Rhode Island to achieve this honor. John Morton, professor of surgery (bariatric, minimally invasive), is one of three physician-directors leading the center, alongside Wajahat Mehal, professor of medicine (digestive diseases), and Ania Jastreboff ’11PhD, associate professor of medicine (endocrinology). Together, they oversee a multidisciplinary team of approximately 20 physicians, including 12 bariatric surgeons, who provide a fully integrated, science-driven approach to weight management. 

The center offers a broad spectrum of services, including dietary counseling and nutrition training at its onsite test kitchen, psychological support, advanced medical therapies, endoscopic procedures, and bariatric surgery. By combining leading research and medical expertise, the center provides a seamless, patient-centered experience that enhances quality of life and reduces the risk of serious health conditions.