Research Synopsis
Dr. Zai has been conducting a number of pharmacogenetics studies in schizophrenia patients since 2004, including the antipsychotic-induced side effect of tardive dyskinesia. He is continuing with pharmacogenetic studies as a staff scientist in a federally funded randomized controlled three-arm pharmacogenetic clinical trial. His research portfolio has expanded to include genetic studies of suicidal ideation and behaviour, PTSD, childhood-onset high aggression, and bipolar disorder.

His main research goal is to elucidate the mechanism of psychiatric disorders and suicidal behaviour. His multidisciplinary research strategies (from high-throughput genetic analyses, animal behavioral models, to interactions with social and environmental factors in large datasets) will yield findings that can potentially be translated to suicide prevention, reduced medication side effects, and better outcomes for psychiatric patients.