Estrogen's role in early psychotic-like experiences during puberty
Estrogen and Mechanisms of Psychotic-like Experiences in the Transition to Adolescence
This project looks at whether natural rises in estrogen during puberty relate to early psychotic-like experiences in girls and young women.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Northwestern University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Chicago, UNITED STATES) |
| Project ID | NIH-11166427 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If I join, researchers will follow young people from late childhood into adolescence and collect hormone tests, brain scans focused on the hippocampus, and questionnaires about psychotic-like experiences. They will track how the timing and levels of estrogen change alongside brain development and subtle symptoms over time. The team uses repeated, longitudinal measurements instead of asking adults to recall their puberty. The goal is to find early biological patterns that might explain why psychotic disorders often appear later in females.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are biological females in late childhood or early adolescence (around the start of puberty), with or without mild psychotic-like experiences.
Not a fit: People who are male, already have a diagnosed psychotic disorder, or are well outside the puberty window are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this study.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could reveal early biological signs that help predict later psychosis risk in females and guide earlier monitoring or prevention efforts.
How similar studies have performed: Prior studies have mostly been retrospective or focused on adults, so longitudinal work during puberty is limited and this approach is relatively novel.
Where this research is happening
Chicago, UNITED STATES
- Northwestern University — Chicago, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Mittal, Vijay a — Northwestern University
- Study coordinator: Mittal, Vijay a
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.