Brett Froeliger
Professor; Director, Cognitive Neuroscience Systems (CNS) Core Facility
froeligerb@health.missouri.edu
Personal Website
Faculty
Lab Information
Health Neuroscience Center
15 Melvin H. Marx Building, 1416 Carrie Francke Dr.
About the Lab

The Health Neuroscience Center (HNC) is organized around using cognitive and affective neuroscience methods to investigate the pathophysiology of drug addiction and neuropsychiatric disorders. Our goal is to provide a bridge between preclinical and clinical trials research to better understand the etiology of dysregulated behavior and the effectiveness of new treatment that may ultimately be used in the clinic. We are currently conducting research in nicotine addiction and opioid use disorder; and examining the effects of novel pharmacological, non-invasive neural stimulation and behavioral-based treatments for substance use disorders. Each research project is conducted using human subjects and leverages a broad array of techniques, including fMRI brain imaging, lab-based behavioral measures, and remote behavioral monitoring and assessments. The HNC invites students, fellows, and faculty to discuss ways to collaborate on mind-blowing research that may hold the potential to reduce human suffering and improve well-being.

Research Interests

Addiction Neuroscience, Mindfulness, Neuropsychopharmacology, Inhibitory Control, Emotion Regulation.

My program of research is focused on a) examining the neural and behavioral mechanisms that undergird the ongoing maintenance of substance used disorders and b) evaluating the potential of new therapeutic approaches for treating addiction pathophysiology. Therapeutic testing is conducted in three domains: 1) novel medications/molecules; 2) emerging behavioral treatments; and 3) non-invasive neural stimulation. 

Bio

Ph.D.                         Southern Illiniois University - Carbondale        2008

Research Scientist    Duke University Medical Center                      2007-2012

Assistant Prof            MUSC                                                              2013-2017

Associate Prof           MUSC                                                              2017-2020

Profressor                  University of Missouri                                      2020 - present 

Selected Publications

MANUSCRIPTS

  • McConnell, P. A., E. L. Garland, J. K. Zubieta, R. Newman-Norlund, S. Powers and Froeliger, B. (2020). Impaired frontostriatal functional connectivity among chronic opioid using pain patients is associated with dysregulated affect. Addict Biol. PMID: 30945801
  • Newman-Norlund, R., Gibson, M., McConnell, P., Froeliger, B. (2020). Dissociable effects of theta-burst repeated transcranial magnetic stimulation to the inferior frontal gyrus on inhibitory control in nicotine addiction. Frontiers in Psychiatry. Apr 15;11:260. PMID: 32351412
  • Garland, E.L., Atchley, R., Howard, M., Zubieta, J-K., Froeliger, B. (2019). Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement Restructures Reward Processing Among Chronic Opioid Users: Neurophysiological and Affective Evidence. Science Advances 5(10). PMID 31663023
  • Froeliger, B., Mathew, A.R., McConnell, P.A., Eichberg, C., Saladin, M.E., Carpenter, M.J., Garland, E.L. (2017). Restructuring Reward Mechanisms in Nicotine Addiction: A Pilot fMRI Study of Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement for Cigarette Smokers. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine: eCAM 2017.
  • Froeliger, B., McConnell, P.A., Sweitzer, M.A., Bell, S., Kozink, R.V., Eichberg, C., Gray, K.M., McClernon, F.J. (2017). Association Between Baseline Corticothalamic-Mediated Inhibitory Control and Smoking Relapse Vulnerability. JAMA Psychiatry. Mar 1. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2017.0017
  • Froeliger, B., McConnell, P.A., Stankeviciute, N., McClure, E.A., Kalivas, P.W., Gray, K.M. (2015). The effects of N-Acetylcysteine on frontostriatal resting-state functional connectivity, withdrawal symptoms and smoking abstinence: A double-blind, placebo-controlled fMRI pilot study. Drug and Alcohol Dependence. doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2015.09.021. PMID: 26454838.
  • McConnell, P.A., Froeliger, B.  (2015). Mindfulness, Mechanisms and Meaning: Perspectives from the Cognitive Neuroscience of Addiction. Psychological Inquiry. PMID: 26924915.
  • Garland, E.L., Manusov, E., Froeliger, B., Kelly, A., Williams, J., Howard, M. (2014). Mindfulness-Oriented Recovery Enhancement for Chronic Pain and Prescription Opioid Misuse: Results from an Early Stage Randomized Controlled Trial. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. Jun;82(3):448-59. PMID: 24491075.
  • Garland, E. L., Froeliger, B., Zeidan, F., Suveg, K., & Howard, M. O. (2013). The downward spiral of chronic pain, prescription opioid misuse, and addiction: Cognitive, affective, and neuropsychopharmacologic pathways. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews. Dec;37(10 Pt 2):2597-607. PMID: 23988582.
  • Rose, J.E., McClernon, F.J., Froeliger, B., Behm, F.M., Preud'homme, X., Krystal, A. (2011). Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS) of the superior frontal gyrus modulates craving for cigarettes. Biological Psychiatry, 70, 794-799. PMID: 21762878.
  • Froeliger, B., Gilbert, D.G., & McClernon, F.J. (2009). Effects of Nicotine on Novelty Detection and Memory Recognition Performance: Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Studies of Smokers and Nonsmokers. Psychopharmacology, 205, 625-633. PMID: 19488741.
  • Gilbert, D. G., Sugai, C., Zuo, Y., Rabinovich, N. E., McClernon, F. J., & Froeliger, B. E. (2007). Brain indices of nicotine’s effects on attentional bias to smoking and emotional pictures and to task-relevant targets. Nicotine and Tobacco Research, 9, 351-363. PMID: 17365767.

BOOK CHAPTERS

  • Fisher, M.L., Pauly, J.R, Froeliger, B., Turner, J.R. (2020). Translational Research in Nicotine Addiction. Cold Spring Harbor Perspectives in Medicine. Cold Spring Habor Laboratory Press.
  • Garland, E.L., Bell, S., Atchley, R., Froeliger, B. (2017). Emotion Dysregulation in Addiction.  Oxford Handbook on Emotion Dysregulation, Oxford University Press.
  • Garland, E.L., & Froeliger, B.E. (2013). Mindfulness training targets addiction at the attention-emotion interface: A neurocognitive framework. In E. Langer, A. Le, & C. Ngoumen (eds.), Handbook of Mindfulness, Wiley-Blackwell.
Lab Area
Cognition and Neuroscience