BRIAN P. BRENNAN, MD
- Harvard title(s): Instructor in Psychiatry
- McLean title(s): Associate Director of Translational Neuroscience Research,
Biological Psychiatry Laboratory - Email: bbrennan@partners.org
- Telephone: 617-855-2911
- Fax: 617-855-3585
- Office Address: Oaks Building, Room 204
- Degree(s):
- 1994 B.A., University of Pennsylvania
- 2000 M.D., University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine
- 2009 M.M.Sc., Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology
- Residency:
- 2000-2001 Preliminary Internship in Internal Medicine, Pennsylvania Hospital
- 2001-2004 Residency in Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital/McLean Hospital
- 2003-2004 Administrative Chief Resident, McLean Hospital
- Board Certifications(s):
- 2001 Massachusetts Medical License Registration
- 2005 Board Certification in Adult Psychiatry
- Clinical Interests: Obsessive-compulsive disorder, treatment-resistant depression, bipolar disorder
- Bio:
Dr. Brennan received his M.D. degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and completed his residency training in psychiatry at the Massachusetts General Hospital and McLean Hospital. After two years as an inpatient psychiatrist on the psychotic disorders inpatient unit at McLean Hospital, Dr. Brennan commenced a two-year psychopharmacology research fellowship in the Biological Psychiatry Laboratory at McLean, which focused on training in the design and conduct of clinical trials to investigate novel pharmacologic interventions for a variety of psychiatric illnesses including mood, anxiety, and eating disorders. He subsequently received additional training as a Fellow in the Clinical Investigator Training Program through the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and the Harvard-MIT Division of Health Sciences and Technology and received a Masters in Medical Science degree as a result of this work.
The overarching theme of Dr. Brennan's research is the identification and investigation of novel biological targets that may lead to improved pharmacologic therapies for mood and anxiety disorders and to identify biomarkers of treatment response. This work has led to collaborative efforts with molecular and preclinical researchers at McLean to investigate innovative medication treatments for depression, bipolar disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) based on basic science discoveries. In addition to this work, Dr. Brennan has focused on the use of neuroimaging techniques including magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) and functional MRI (fMRI) as a means to: 1) better understand the mechanism of action of both standard and novel treatments for mood and anxiety disorders; 2) identify neurochemical and functional mediators of response to treatment with these medications; and 3) identify innovative biological targets for the development of novel pharmacologic treatments. In addition to his research work, Dr. Brennan is an attending psychiatrist in the Obsessive-Compulsive Disorders Institute at McLean Hospital — an intensive residential treatment program for patients with severe OCD and OCD-spectrum disorders — where he specializes in the pharmacologic management of severe treatment-resistant OCD and related disorders.
Dr. Brennan's clinical and research work has led to grant funding from the National Institute of Mental Health, NARSAD, the Sidney R. Baer, Jr. Foundation, and the Stanley Medical Research Institute and receipt of the Outstanding Professional of the Year Award from the Boston Chapter of the Depression and Bipolar Disorder Support Alliance.
- Curriculum vitæ: (PDF format)
- Publications: (PDF Format)
