DR. JENNIFER PERUSINI OF NEUROVATION LABS
“My main vision, not just for the company but for my entire career, is to revolutionize mental healthcare. I view mental health disorders and psychiatric disorders as physical ailments with underlying physical causes. We should be able to diagnose and treat them with the same accuracy as we would for, say, strep.” —Dr. Jennifer Perusini
Dr. Jennifer Perusini, a neuroscientist and entrepreneur, is Co-Founder and CEO of Neurovation Labs, a biotechnology startup focused on transforming mental healthcare. Jennifer’s research forms the basis of Neurovation Labs’ pioneering research, which made the groundbreaking discovery that there is a physiological component to Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) that can be targeted to both diagnose and treat the disorder. Supported by the Dept. of Defense, Jennifer and her team are currently developing a precision medication as well as a companion patented/ patent-pending objective diagnostic test for PTSD.
Jennifer earned her B.A. in Neuroscience & Behavior at Barnard College, Columbia University, and her Ph.D. in Behavioral Neuroscience at UCLA where she studied the mechanisms underlying PTSD in an animal model. She completed her post-doctoral fellowship, which focused on rodent models of aging and Alzheimer’s disease, at Columbia University in the Departments of Psychiatry and Integrative Neuroscience.
When you were studying at Barnard, how did you decide to major in neuroscience and pursue research? After graduating Barnard, what inspired you to study PTSD?
I was always interested in science; in kindergarten, I remember playing with earthworms and loving every second of it. Initially, I was a chemistry major at Barnard and changed to neuroscience as I took more classes in psychology and biology.
Entering college, I also knew that I wanted to do medical research, but I didn't know if I was going to medical school or graduate school. My research experiences at Barnard really helped me land on grad school. As for my focus on PTSD, it was more of a personal decision. I'm a lifelong New Yorker and I lived through the aftermath of 9/11. Where I lived, a large number of first responders lost their lives in the days after the attacks. I watched people in my community lose their loved ones. At the same time, I had lost my mother and my grandfather, and even my dog, all unrelated to 9/11 but in that same month. I started seeing how some people lost their way after such a tragedy, and how others threw themselves into things like work. I wanted to know what was going on in the brain to allow us to have such different coping mechanisms. That's why I really got into studying the brain, fear, and PTSD, and decided on Dr. Michael Fanselow’s lab at UCLA.
What made you decide to found Neurovation Labs?
Neurovation Labs was born out of my neuroscience research as I was working with a robust preclinical model of PTSD. I wanted to understand the underlying mechanisms of fear and PTSD, specifically how we acquire fear and how we maintain these strong fear memories. We discovered a brain biomarker of PTSD: this protein in the fear center of the brain is elevated stably after a traumatic event. As a result, we see hyper-excitability and stronger trauma memories. Now we're leveraging that discovery to develop both a precision treatment for PTSD as well as an imaging diagnostic.
What is your vision for Neurovation Labs?
My main vision, not just for the company but for my entire career, is to revolutionize mental healthcare. I view mental health disorders and psychiatric disorders as physical ailments with underlying physical causes. We should be able to diagnose and treat them with the same accuracy as we would for, say, strep. Another goal I have is to end the stigma surrounding mental health. This is such a big part of our culture that needs to be addressed. With our company, we have both diagnostic and treatment methods, and although they are on separate development tracks, they go hand in hand. The diagnostic involves a radiotracer that can be used in something like a PET scan, which allows us to visualize the biomarker in the brain. The treatment targets that same biomarker so we can bring the proteins back down to baseline levels. Currently, we are in the preclinical and non-clinical R&D stages, focusing heavily on our drug discovery program.
We know that Neurovation Labs works with veterans and has a partnership with the Department of Defense. What has that experience been like?
We are funded by a program within the Air Force called AFWERX, and our experience has been exceptional. This program is unique in that once we were awarded a Phase I, we had a three-month customer discovery sprint. For three months between December 2019 and March 2020, I was calling everyone I can get a hold of within the military to back our cause up and to support us. We were awarded our Phase II as COVID started. For the first time, we had great money flow coming into the company and then our labs had to be shut down. It was a mental, physical, and emotional struggle for the duration of the pandemic, but we were up and running quickly and made up for the lost time.
Do you think there's anything in your training as a scientist that has influenced the way you operate as a founder?
Working in a startup and working in a lab are different. For example, I don't do any actual bench science anymore and just run the company. In academia, there's a lot more bureaucracy and longer pathways to decision-making. You're always working for someone, even when running your own lab. That's not to say there isn't any red tape in a company as well. In both the startup world and the academic world, there is a shared passion to get your work done and caring about the underlying goals of whatever disease model you're studying. Neither my graduate lab nor my postdoctoral lab were large, so learning how to manage everyone's roles, schedules, personalities certainly prepared me for my position as a CEO of a startup today.
What was your favorite part of working with Women in Learning, an organization that supports women studying neuroscience?
Women in Learning is a cause that is very dear to my heart. It was started by a graduate student from my previous lab at UCLA, and I joined her as she was starting it. As someone who went to an all-women's college, I had a lot of resources to offer her. Our group grew out of a larger conference called the Pavlovian Society, and now we have programs all over the country. Female representation is so important, and I believe that we were able to fill a gap at the Pavlovian Society annual meeting in which there were very few women in attendance or speaking. But over the past decade, we have seen a shift with more women speakers at the conference. It's not about excluding men, but rather allowing everyone to make an impact on the industry.
What is your recommendation for how our CWBS community can start building their founder knowledge now?
My advice is to always follow your dreams and pursue what you're passionate about. However, combining science and entrepreneurship requires walking a fine line. You can't go into grad school thinking that you're going to find something groundbreaking and then turn it into a company. I recommend getting involved at any stage, such as interning at a startup. Many people are surprised by how little research actually goes on in an early-stage startup and how much business there is to learn. There are also regional programs for startups that are open to people of all levels of expertise. Some examples include Bio Labs, which offers cheap or free seminars and networking events. Barnard also has resources such as the Athena Center for Leadership and the Barnard Entrepreneurs Network, of which I am the Chair.
For people who are interested in science but are more business-minded, I don't necessarily recommend going to grad school. Business school or law school may be a better fit depending on your interests. It's important to note that not everyone needs to be an entrepreneur or start a company. Patent lawyers, consultants, graphic designers, IT personnel, and others are essential in supporting the ecosystem.
Quick Take 1: What was your favorite experience during your time at Barnard?
It's hard to pick just one thing, as I loved every part of Barnard. However, if I had to choose, I would say being able to work as a research assistant at the New York State Psychiatric Institute was a particularly meaningful experience for me. It gave me a taste of what my career in science could look like, and ultimately inspired me to pursue a PhD instead of going to medical school. Of course, I also have fond memories of events like midnight breakfast, Big Sub with my best friends, and Senior Week - so really, all of it was amazing!
Quick Take 2: Who is the one woman that you've looked up to?
My mom. Though she passed away 21 years ago, her voice still echoes in my head when things get tough. She was inherently good-hearted and positively impacted so many people in her short 40 years. She accomplished a lot personally and professionally, and I want to make her proud every day.
Quick Take 3: What is one book or podcast that you would recommend?
The Good Your Money Can Do by Eva Yazhari. She's a perfect example of supporting entrepreneurs and business ecosystems in unique ways; I learned all about social impact investing from her!