After studying philosophy as an undergraduate at Harvard, Dr. Alexander-Bloch completed a Master’s in computational biology at the University of Cambridge. His PhD, jointly at Cambridge and the intramural program of the National Institute of Mental Health, explored MRI brain networks in typical development and schizophrenia. After UCLA medical school and residency in the Yale Department of Psychiatry, Dr. Alexander-Bloch served briefly as an assistant professor at Yale before moving to the CHOP-Penn system in 2019 to start the Brain-Gene-Development Lab.

Dr. Alexander-Bloch takes a multi-disciplinary approach to probe neurodevelopment and its disruption in mental illness. He develops computational methods to integrate brain imaging, genomics and clinical data. He is at work on projects in partnership with researchers at Penn and CHOP, as well as national and international collaborators. Current projects include:

• Investigating the underlying cellular, genetic and transcriptomic basis of brain imaging measures such as cortical thickness, folding and multimodal connectivity between brain regions
• Using network models to investigate normal brain development and altered developmental trajectories that lead to mental illness
• Integrating the study of rare genetic syndromes with more common genetic and environmental risk factors to predict the onset of psychosis spectrum disorders

Dr. Alexander-Bloch works at the Richards Biomedical Research Building.

AB (magna cum laude), Harvard College, Philosophy, 2006

MPhil (with distinction), University of Cambridge, Computational Biology, 2007

PhD, University of Cambridge, 2015

MD (alpha omega alpha), University of California - Los Angeles, 2015

Attending Psychiatrist, CHOP

Director, Brain-Gene-Development Laboratory

Organization of Human Brain Mapping,  2009-

Society of Biological Psychiatry, 2013-

American Psychiatric Association, 2015-

American Psychiatric Association Research Colloquium, 2019

Career Development Institute for Psychiatry, 2019

Lustman Award, Yale Department of Psychiatry, 2018

NIMH Outstanding Resident Award, 2017

Thomas P. Detre Award, Yale Department of Psychiatry, 2017

Neuroscience Research Training Program, Yale Department of Psychiatry, 2015-2019

American College of Neuropsychopharmacology Travel Award, 2015

Organization for Human Brain Mapping Travel Award, 2010, 2011, 2013

UCLA-Caltech Medical Science Training Program, 2013-2015

NIH-Oxford-Cambridge Scholarship, 2009-2013

K08: Combined Brain and Gene Network Approaches to the Developmental Hypothesis of Schizophrenia 
NIMH
2019-25
PI: Alexander-Bloch

Google Scholar

Neurodevelopment and Psychosis Faculty

Penn Faculty Profile