Peter J. Gianaros Assistant Professor, School of Medicine University of Pittsburgh Phone: (412) 383-5078 Fax: (412) 383-5458 Email: gianarospj@upmc.edu

Research Interests Dr. Gianaros maintains two lines of research on individual differences in brain function and structure, particularly as they relate to biological and behavioral risk factors for cardiovascular disease. In the first line of research, functional brain imaging methods are used to characterize individual differences the reactivity of paralimbic brain areas, such as the cingulate cortex, insula, and amygdala, to acute psychological stressors. These paralimbic areas are targeted because they play instrumental roles in processing stress-related information, regulating stress-related coping behaviors, and orchestrating physiological stress reactions that may influence cardiovascular disease vulnerability. Such individual differences in stressor-evoked paralimbic reactivity are specifically examined in association with risk factors for cardiovascular disease, such as dysregulated forms of cardiovascular and autonomic nervous system activity and indicators of preclinical atherosclerosis. The chief aim of this line of research is to identify functional neural phenotypes that may predispose individuals to cardiovascular disease. In the second line of research, structural brain imaging methods are used to investigate the relationships between chronic forms of stress and changes in the morphology of paralimbic brain areas. This line of research builds on animal models showing that chronic stress leads to a structural remodeling of brain areas such as the cingulate cortex, amygdala, and hippocampus. Importantly, these structural changes may alter cognitive, behavioral, physiological stress-regulatory functions that may influence cardiovascular disease vulnerability. Examples of putative indicators of chronic stress that are examined are low socioeconomic status and longitudinal reports of perceived stress during key life transitions (e.g. menopause). This line of research is being extended to investigate changes in brain morphology (e.g., reductions in regional grey matter volume and cortical thickness) as possible sequelae of etiological risk factors for cardiovascular disease, including hypertension and inflammation. Recent Publications Gianaros PJ, Horenstein JA, Cohen S, Matthews KA, Brown SM, Flory JD, Critchley HD, Manuck SB, Hariri AR (2007). Perigenual anterior cingulate morphology covaries with perceived social standing. Social, Cognitive, and Affective Neuroscience, 2, 161-173. Gianaros PJ, Jennings JR, Sheu LK, Greer PJ, Kuller LH & Matthews KA (2007). Prospective reports of chronic life stress predict decreased grey matter volume in the hippocampus. NeuroImage, 35, 795-803. Gianaros PJ, Jennings JR, Sheu LK, Derbyshire SWG, & Matthews KA (2007). Heightened functional neural reactivity to psychological stress covaries with exaggerated blood pressure reactivity. Hypertension, 49, 134-140. Gianaros PJ, Greer PJ, Ryan CM & Jennings JR (2006). Higher blood pressure predicts lower regional grey matter volume: Consequences on short-term information processing. NeuroImage, 31, 754-65. Gianaros PJ, Derbyshire SWG, May JC, Siegle GJ, Gamalo MA & Jennings JR (2005) Anterior cingulate activity correlates with blood pressure during stress. Psychophysiology, 42, 627-635.