Assistant Researcher, Psychiatry & Human Behavior
School of Medicine

Major depression, genomics, biomarkers, translational neuroscience, pharmacogenomics

2017-present Certified Clinical Research Professional (CCRP)

2009 Travel Award, American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP)

2005-2008 Doctoral Research Award, Canadian Institute of Health Research

2002 Academic Distinction, Concordia University

2001-present Member Golden Key Honour Society

2001 Undergraduate Summer Studentship, University of Montreal

I have conducted research in the area of pharmacogenomics in neuropsychiatric disorders using peripheral tissue and have published numerous studies on molecular changes (genetic, gene expression) incurred as a result of treatment. In conjunction with my research into biomarkers, I have gained expertise in the collection and analysis of clinically ascertained patient information, and in post-mortem brain and neuroanatomical studies of neuropsychiatric disorders. Most recently, my research has focused on the study of stress response in major depression and suicide and the identification of a blood-based biomarker signature of suicidality, as well as, telomere length alterations in neuropsychiatric disorders.

1. Mamdani F, Sequeira A. Blood-based biomarkers for suicide in depression: moving a step closer to
prediction. Neuropsychopharmacology. (2023) Jan;48(1):245-24.

2. Stein RA, Mamdani F, Bunney B, Cartagena P, Vawter MP, Schatzberg A, Jack BD, Francis LS, Myers
RM, Watson SJ, Akil H, Bunney WE, Sequeira A. Overexpression of Cancer- and Neurotransmitter-
Associated Genes in the Nucleus Accumbens of Smokers. medRxiv. 2022 October. doi:
10.1101/2022.09.30.22280587.

3. Mamdani, F., Bunney, B., Burke, K., Cartagena, P., Walsh, D., Lee, F., Barchas, J., Schatzberg, A.,
Myers, R., Watson, S., Akil H., Vawter, MP., Bunney, WE., Sequeira, A. Identification of potential blood
biomarkers associated with suicide and major depressive disorder. Translational Psychiatry
Translational Psychiatry (2022) Apr 14;12(1):159.

4. Mamdani, F., (2020, October 10th) “The Genetics of Mental Health.” The.Ismaili.
https://the.ismaili/global/news/features/the-genetics-mental-health

5.Le-Niculescu H., Roseberry K., Levey D.F., Rogers J., Kosary K., Prabha S., Jones T., Judd S.,
McCormick M.A., Wessel A.R., Williams A., Phalen P., Mamdani F., Sequeira A., Kurian S.M,
Niculescu A.B. (2020) Towards Precision Medicine for Stress Disorders: Diagnostic Biomarkers and
Targeted Drugs. Molecular Psychiatry 25(5): 918-938.

6. Hjelm B.E., Rollins B., Morgan L., Sequeira A., Mamdani F., Pereira F., Damas J., Webb M.G., Weber
M.D., Schatzberg A.F., Barchas J.D., Lee F.S., Akil H., Watson S.J., Myers R.M., Chao E.C., Kimonis
V., Thompson P.M., Bunney W.E., Vawter M.P. (2019) Splice-Break: exploiting an RNA-seq splice
junction algorithm to discover mitochondrial DNA deletion breakpoints and analyses of psychiatric
disorders. Nucleic Acids Res. 4;47(10):e59.

7. Limon A., Mamdani F., Hjelm B.E., Vawter M.P., Sequeira A. (2016) Targets of polyamine
dysregulation in major depression and suicide: Activity-dependent feedback, excitability, and
neurotransmission. Neurosci Biobehav Rev. 66:80-91.

8. Hjelm B.E., Rollins B., Mamdani F., Lauterborn J.C., Kirov G., Lynch G., Gall C.M., Sequeira A.,
Vawter M.P. (2015) Evidence of Mitochondrial Dysfunction within the Complex Genetic Etiology of
Schizophrenia. Mol Neuropsychiatry. 1(4):201-219.

9. Mamdani F., Rollins, B., Morgan, L., Myers, R. Barchas, J., Schatzberg, A., Watson, S., Akil H.,
Potkin, S., Vawter, MP., Bunney, WE., Sequeira, PA. (2015) Variable telomere length across post-
mortem human brain regions and specific reduction in the hippocampus of major depressive disorder.
Translational Psychiatry 5(e636).

10. Mamdani, F., Rollins, B., Morgan, L., Sequeira, P.A., Vawter, M.P. (2014) The somatic common
deletion in mitochondrial DNA is decreased in schizophrenia. Schizophrenia Research 159(2-3):370-
5.

11. Mamdani, F., Martin, M.V., Lencz, T., Rollins, B., Robinson, D.G., Moon, E.A., Malhotra, A.K., Vawter,
M.P. (2013) Coding and Non-Coding Gene Expression Biomarkers in Mood Disorders and
Schizophrenia. Diseases Markers 35(1): 11-21.

12. Mamdani, F., Berlim, M.T., Beaulieu, M.M., Turecki, G. (2014) Pharmacogenomic Predictors of
Citalopram Treatment Outcome in Major Depressive Disorder. World Journal of Biological
Psychiatry 15(2):135-44.

13. Lopez, J.P., Mamdani, F., Labonté, B., Yang, J., Beaulieu, M.M., Berlim, M.T., Ernst, C., Turecki, G.
(2013) Chromatin regulation of BDNF expression according to antidepressant response. Molecular
Psychiatry 18(4):398-9.

14. Vawter, M.P., Mamdani, F., Macciardi, F. (2011) Discovering biomarkers in schizophrenia -- an
integrative functional genomics approach. Briefings in Functional Genomics 10(6): 387-99.

15. Mamdani, F., Berlim, M.T., Beaulieu, M.M., Labbe, A., Merette, C., Turecki, G. (2011) Gene
expression biomarkers of response to citalopram treatment in major depressive disorder.
Translational Psychiatry 1(e13).

16. Lopez de Lara, C., Jaitovich-Groisman, I., Lebel, V., Mamdani, F., Cruceanu, C., Yerko, V., Beck, A.,
Young, T., Rouleau, G., Grof, P., Alda, M., Turecki, G. (2010) Implication of synapse-related genes in
bipolar disorder by linkage and gene expression analyses. International Journal of
Neuropsychopharmacology 13(10):1397-410.

17. Roy, M., Harvey, P.O., Berlim, M.T., Mamdani, F., Beaulieu, M.M., Turecki, G., Lepage, M. (2010)
Medial prefrontal cortex activity during successful encoding of pictures predicts symptomatic
improvement after 8 weeks of treatment with citalopram in patients with major depression. Journal of
Psychiatry and Neuroscience 35(3): 152-62.

18. Sequeira, P.A., Mamdani, F., Ernst, C., Vawter, M.P., Bunney, W.E., Klempan, T., Gratton, A.,
Benkelfat, C., Rouleau, G.A., Mechawar, N., Turecki, G. (2009) Global brain gene expression
analysis links glutamatergic and GABAergic alterations to suicide and major depression. PLoS One
4(8):e6585.

19. Mamdani, F., Alda, M., Grof, P., Young, L.T., Rouleau, G., Turecki, G. (2008) Lithium response and
genetic variation in the CREB family of genes. American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B:
Neuropsychiatric Genetics 147B(4): 500-4.

20. Mamdani, F., Sequeira, A., Alda, M., Grof, P., Rouleau, G., Turecki, G. (2007) No association
between the PREP gene and lithium responsive bipolar disorder. BMC Psychiatry 26(7): 9.

21. Mamdani, F., Jaitovich-Groisman, I., Alda, M., Turecki, G. (2004) Response to lithium treatment in
bipolar disorder as a pharmacogenetic phenotype. Current Psychosis and Therapeutics Reports
2:167-175.

22. Mamdani, F., Jaitovich-Groisman, I., Alda, M., Turecki, G. (2004) Pharmacogenetics of lithium
responsive bipolar disorder. The Pharmacogenomics Journal 4(3): 161-170.

23. Mamdani, F., Jaitovich-Groisman, I., Alda, M., Turecki, G. (2003) Long-term responsiveness to
lithium as a pharmacogenetic outcome variable: Treatment and etiologic implications. Current
Psychiatry Reports 5: 484-492.

24. Mamdani, F., Jaitovich-Groisman, I., Alda, M., Turecki, G. (2003) Pharmacogenetics of Bipolar
Disorder. Current Pharmacogenomics 1(4): 269-276.

25. Sequeira, A., Mamdani, F., Lalovic, A., Anguelova, M., Lesage, A., Seguin, M., Chawky, N.,
Desautels, A., Turecki, G. (2004) Alpha 2A adrenergic receptor gene and suicide. Psychiatry
Research 125(2): 87-93.

* American Foundation for Suicide Prevention - Identification and validation of brain relevant blood-based biomarkers for suicide in major depressive disorder (Sequeira – PI, 2024 - 2027). Role: Co - Investigator *Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program - Nicotine use in bipolar disorder: Interplay between neurophysiology, neurocognition and genomics (Patterson – PI, 2022 - 2025) Role: Co - Investigator *Tobacco-Related Disease Research Program - Smoking in Bipolar Disorder: Contribution of Genomics and Sensory Gating (Patterson & Mamdani – PIs, 2019 - 2022) Role: Co - PI *American Foundation for Suicide Prevention - Comparison of Brain and Blood Suicide Signatures: From Mechanisms to Biomarkers (Sequeira – PI, 2020 - 2022) Role: Co - Investigator *Pritzker Family Philanthropic Fund – Genetic and Neuropathological Abnormalities in Neuropsychiatric and Neurological Disorders (Bunney – PI, 2000 - 2027) Role: Co - Investigator *NIMH R01 – Metallothioneins and Polyamines in Major Depression and Suicide (Sequeira – PI, 2012 - 2016) Role: Co - Investigator *NIMH R21 – Mitochondrial Deletions in Mood Disorders (Vawter – PI, 2013 - 2015) Role: Co - Investigator *Allen Institute Brain Science Sponsored Project – Human Transcriptome Map (Vawter – PI, 2008 - 2015) Role: Co - Investigator

Link to this profile
https://faculty.uci.edu/profile/?facultyId=7300

Last updated
02/04/2025