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CHOP-PENN BRAIN
GENE DEVELOPMENT LAB

Advancing brain imaging, genomics,
and clinical informatics to improve neurodevelopmental outcomes
across the lifespan

Led by Aaron Alexander-Bloch, the Brain-Gene Development Lab integrates multimodal neuroimaging and genomics data with deep phenotyping of individuals within the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and University of Pennsylvania systems.

OUR AREAS OF FOCUS INCLUDE:

Neurodevelopment / Imaging-genomics / Brain Structure and Anatomy / fMRI Networks

lab news

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Second Annual Lab Retreat

March 14, 2026

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Laura accepted to Graduate School!

February 27, 2026

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Dabriel accepted to Graduate School!

February 20, 2026

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International Neuropsychological Society Conference

February 4, 2026

recent publications

Polygenic risk, psychopathology, and personalized Functional brain network topography in adolescence

Sun et al.

JAMA Psychiatry, 2025

Functional brain networks are associated with both behavior and genetic factors. To uncover clinically translatable mechanisms of psychopathology, it is critical to define how the spatial organization of these networks relates to genetic risk during development. The current study sought to determine the relationship between transdiagnostic polygenic risk scores (PRSs), personalized functional brain networks (PFNs), and overall psychopathology (p-factor) during early adolescence. Findings indicate that polygenic risk for transdiagnostic adulthood psychopathology is associated with both p-factor and PFN topography during early adolescence.

Polygenic risk, psychopathology, and personalized Functional brain network topography in adolescence

JAMA Psychiatry, 2025

The copy number variant architecture of psychopathology and cognitive development in the ABCD® study

American Journal of Psychiatry, 2025

ComBatLS: A location- and scale-preserving method for multi-site image harmonization

Human Brain Mapping, 2025

Normative trajectories of extra-axial cerebrospinal fluid during childhood and adolescence defined in a clinically-acquired MRI dataset

Medrxiv, 2024

CHOP-Penn Lifespan Brain Institute

Richards Biomedical Research Building

3700 Hamilton Walk

Philadelphia, PA 19104

© 2023 Brain-Gene Development Lab

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