The Shinozaki Laboratory studies the molecular influence of environmental factors such as trauma, stress, and inflammation on individual susceptibility to psychiatric conditions including major depressive disorder (MDD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and delirium using epigenetic/genetic approaches as well as a medical engineering approach through device development and machine learning.

The main focus of the Shinozaki Lab has been to examine epigenetic changes resulting from exposure to stress such as trauma or inflammation to aid in the search of biomarkers of stress exposure and risk for MDD, PTSD, and delirium. Dr. Shinozaki, in collaboration with many colleagues across different fields, successfully developed several ongoing projects in epigenetics/genetics- one in collaboration with neurosurgeons to study DNAm correlation between brain tissue and peripheral tissues, which is supported by NIH R01 funding. 

From the angle of neuroinflammation, we are investigating the role of epigenetics in inflammatory processes in delirium and aging. In addition to epigenetics investigation, we are developing a novel electroencephalography (EEG) device to screen delirium among elderly patients in the hospital.