Dr. Melissa A. Brotman leads the Neuroscience and Novel Therapeutics Unit (NNT) in the Emotion and Development Branch at the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) Intramural Research Program (IRP). Dr. Brotman received her PhD in clinical psychology from the University of Pennsylvania, where she specialized in cognitive behavioral therapy for mood and anxiety disorders.

After completing her clinical internship at the Veterans Affairs Maryland Health Care System/University of Maryland-Baltimore, she completed post-doctoral training in neuroscience, focusing on functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and clinical phenotyping of severe irritability in youth.

Her neurodevelopmental, translational research integrates basic and clinical approaches to the study of mood disorders in children and adolescents. Specifically, she uses affective neuroscience techniques to understand the brain-based mechanisms underlying severe irritability in youth and leverages that pathophysiological knowledge to guide the development of novel targeted interventions.

Dr. Brotman is Principal Investigator on two NIMH protocols: 02-M-0021  and 15-M-0182 . In these studies, her team is examining the brain-bases of irritability and is developing treatments for severe irritability in youth.

Dr. Brotman is a Fellow of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP) and Past Chair of the ACNP Membership Advisory Task Force. She has received multiple research awards, including the NIMH IRP Seymour S. Kety Memorial Training Award, Society of Biological Psychiatry Travel Award, ACNP Young Investigator Memorial Travel Award, and Career Development Institute Award. She has been awarded two NIH Bench-to-Bedside grants , is a consultant on numerous extramural grants, and is a Deputy Editor of The Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. Finally, mentoring is a focal aspect of her career, and her mentorship has been recognized through the NIMH Outstanding Mentor Award and fostering Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts in the NIMH IRP.

Contact Information

Neuroscience and Novel Therapeutics Unit
Emotion and Development Branch
National Institute of Mental Health
9000 Rockville Pike, Building 15K
Bethesda, Maryland 20892
brotmanm@mail.nih.gov, (301) 435-6645