Scientific breakthroughs in understanding mood disorders.

Depressive disorders are very complex diseases, and the expanded efforts of basic and clinical scientists are needed to develop more effective diagnostic and treatment methods. At the Asher Center for the Study and Treatment of Depressive Disorders at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, we foster an intellectual environment that stimulates innovation and creativity, improves diagnostic services and develops novel treatment and prevention strategies for mood disorders.

About Us Meet Our Members

Member Spotlight

Danielle L Anderson, MD

Assistant Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (General Psychiatry)

Assistant Professor. Dr. Anderson has been an Attending Psychiatrist at Mercy Hospital, and an Attending for the Geriatric Psychiatry Clinic at the University of Chicago and South Shore Senior Center since 2008. Dr. Anderson works as an Attending Psychiatrist at the Galter 13 Inpatient Psychiatry Unit, and direct the NMH Stone Mental Health Center’s Older Adult Program. She will also work with Dr. Michael Schrift, Director of the Division of Geriatric Psychiatry and Neuropsychiatry, to re-design didactic seminars and clinical rotations in geriatric psychiatry for residents and fellows.

Cara Angelotta, MD

Associate Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Forensic Psychiatry)

Cara Angelotta, MD, is vice chair for education for psychiatry and residency program director. She is board-certified in general and forensic psychiatry. She graduated from Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University. She completed residency at Cornell University and fellowship at Columbia University. She has served as the director of medical student education in psychiatry, psychiatry clerkship director, and forensic psychiatry fellowship program director for Northwestern. Dr. Angelotta's academic focus is medical education research, mentorship, curriculum design, and teaching cli...

Christina L Boisseau, PhD

Associate Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Psychology)

Dr. Tina Boisseau received her BS in Psychology from Duke University and her MA and PhD in Clinical Psychology from Boston University. She completed a predoctoral residency and a postdoctoral fellowship at the Alpert Medical School of Brown University, and was an Assistant Professor (Research) in the Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior (DPHB) at Brown before joining the faculty of Northwestern as an Associate Professor in the fall of 2018. Currently, Dr. Boisseau serves as training director for Northwestern Feinberg's clinical psychology doctoral and psychology residency programs. She...

Sheehan D Fisher, PhD

Associate Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Psychology)

Dr. Fisher’s research and clinical interests focus on father’s mental health during the perinatal period and their impact on the family dynamic and child outcomes. His research examines the hormonal and socio-environmental factors that contribute to the etiology of postpartum depression in fathers and mothers. In turn, the impact of paternal and maternal postpartum depression on parenting behaviors and infant/child outcomes is investigated. Dr. Fisher’s clinical work specializes in behavioral therapies for fathers and couples during the perinatal period.

Jacqueline K Gollan, PhD

Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Psychology), Obstetrics and Gynecology

Jacqueline K Gollan, PhD, is a Professor of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, and Co-Director of the T32 E-TRAIN program at NUCATS Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern Medicine. She earned her Clinical Psychology PhD at the University of Washington in Seattle, followed by her clinical internship at Brown University Warren Alpert Medical School in Providence, and finally, her postdoctoral fellowship at Harvard Medical School Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston in 2001. She became a core faculty member of the Psychiatry Department at the Pritzker School of Medicine ...

Leiszle R Lapping-Carr

Assistant Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (Psychology)

Dr. Leiszle Lapping-Carr (she/her) is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences and core faculty with the Intitute for Sexual and Gender Minority Health and Wellbeing. She is the Director of the Sexual and Relationship Health Program and Co-Director of the Pride Center. She specializes in research and clinical work with people from the sexual and gender minority community experiencing distress related to reproductive events, sexual health, and relationship health challenges. Her current research is focused on adapting a preventive perinatal depression interve...

Dorothy K Sit, MD

Associate Professor, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences (General Psychiatry)

Dr. Dorothy Sit is an Associate Professor at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. Dr. Sit’s main clinical research focus is on the development of treatments for women with mood disorders. Dr. Sit’s clinical work is devoted to the care of women with major mood disorders during the childbearing years including pre-conception planning, pregnancy and postpartum. With NIMH grant support, Dr. Sit recently completed a clinical trial confirming the efficacy of bright light therapy for bipolar depression and discovered that light therapy at midday versus an inactive placebo comparator i...

What We Treat

We are a nationally recognized group of physicians and psychologists dedicated to offering compassionate and confidential patient care for the behavioral health needs of women. We have earned a reputation for providing high-quality patient care and are known for our innovative clinical practices.

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Remembering Donald & Carol Asher

We fondly remember our late benefactor Donald Asher (1936–2023), who is now with his wife Carol, who passed away in 2021. Over the last decade, the couple championed scientific advancement and clinical research at the Asher Center for the Study and Treatment of Depressive Disorders. Both Mr. and Mrs. Asher showed scientific curiosity and gentle humor that always inspired and invigorated our group to keep working to care for our patients. We are indebted to their support and commitment to the community, and they will be missed. We look forward to continuing our work to improve care for individuals with mood disorders with David, Craig and Hope Asher.

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Research at the Asher Center

Find information on how to participate in our current research studies and learn more about ongoing projects from our labs.

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