Dr. Sarah Jefferson

Biography

Sarah Jefferson is an Instructor at Yale School of Medicine, primarily involved in research focusing on neurobiology and psychiatric diseases. She began her academic career at the University of Pennsylvania, where she worked in a translational neuroscience laboratory that examined cell lines derived from patients with psychiatric disorders. Her research aimed to identify disease- and treatment-specific molecular changes in glucocorticoid signaling pathways. Jefferson’s interest lies in Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and the complex symptomatology of the disorder. As an MD-PhD candidate, her dissertation research investigated the effects of GABAergic neurotransmission and specific subsets of GABAergic neurons on anxiety- and depression-related phenotypes in rodent models. She has also studied the role of GABAergic transmission in the rapid antidepressant effects of ketamine. Currently, at Yale, she is exploring the neurobiological mechanisms of psychedelics and their potential as therapeutics for depressive disorders, with a specific focus on the structural plasticity of the mouse frontal cortex in response to psychedelic compounds. Jefferson’s clinical interests are centered on interventional psychiatry for mood disorders. In her spare time, she enjoys biking, rock climbing, playing touch rugby, and spoiling her cats.

Research Interests