Dr. Gilman is an Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School (HMS) Department of Psychiatry and the Director of Neuroimaging at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Center for Addiction Medicine. Her research uses multi-modal imaging, behavioral and cognitive testing to understand the biological, psychological, and clinical aspects of addiction. Specifically, she uses brain imaging and cognitive and behavioral methods to understand different stages of substance use, from initiation to maintenance to recovery.
She is interested in the effects of cannabis on the brain and on cognition, and has been PI on a several NIDA-funded grants, including a K01 to study the neuroscience of peer influences and cannabis use in college students, a K02 to use big data to understand the brain changes in addiction in a large longitudinal dataset, and three R01s to study medicinal properties of cannabinoids.
Education
PhD in Neuroscience, Brown University
Select Publications
- Paul RH, Cho K, Belden A, Carrico AW, Martin E, Bolzenius J, Luckett P, Cooley SA, Mannarino J, Gilman JM, Miano M, Ances BM. Cognitive Phenotypes of HIV Defined Using a Novel Data-driven Approach. J Neuroimmune Pharmacol. 2022 Jan 4. doi: 10.1007/s11481-021-10045-0. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34981318.
- Cooke ME, Clifford JS, Do EK, Gilman JM, Maes HH, Peterson RE, Prom-Wormley EC, Evins AE, Schuster RM; Spit for Science Working group. Polygenic score for cigarette smoking is associated with ever electronic-cigarette use in a college-aged sample. Addiction. 2021 Oct 11. doi: 10.1111/add.15716. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34636095.
- Cooke ME, Gilman JM, Lamberth E, Rychik N, Tervo-Clemmens B, Evins AE, Schuster RM. Assessing Changes in Symptoms of Depression and Anxiety During Four Weeks of Cannabis Abstinence Among Adolescents. Front Psychiatry. 2021 Jul 1;12:689957. doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.689957. PMID: 34276449; PMCID: PMC8280499.
Highlights
Dr. Gilman uses functional and structural neuroimaging, combined with clinical trial designs, to understand how drugs affect the brain. Using multimodal imaging, her goal is to conduct research that can inform decision-making among the public, patients, and clinicians regarding evidence-based decisions to use or not use cannabis for recreational or medical purposes. Specifically, she is studying:
(1) cannabis use and brain/cognitive changes among adolescents and vulnerable populations such as those with psychiatric illnesses;
(2) potential medicinal properties of components of the cannabis plant and specifically of cannabidiol (CBD), a much-needed area of research considering the interest among the public surrounding CBD.
Dr. Gilman has received two NIDA Career Development Awards; a K01 to develop novel neuroimaging paradigms to investigate the effect of social influence and drug use on brain function, and a K02 to learn big data techniques and complete a series of analyses investigating impulsivity in adolescent drug use using the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) dataset.
She has also been awarded a NIDA grant (R01) to investigate the role of medical cannabis on escalation to addiction, neurocognitive effects, and functional brain changes, and a second NIDA grant (R01) to investigate the role of cannabidiol on neuroinflammation using PET scanning in patients with low back pain. She is also Co-investigator on a project using neuroimaging to characterize impaired driving after acute administration of THC or placebo.