Dr. Anthony C. Ruocco

RESEARCH

Anthony C. Ruocco is a clinical neuropsychologist who specializes in the use of neuropsychological and brain imaging techniques to understand the brain abnormalities associated with psychopathology. His primary area of interest is in identifying intermediate phenotypes, or biological liability markers, of borderline personality disorder (BPD) using neuropsychological measures and functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) to probe emotion regulation and impulse control processes. His research, for example, has demonstrated that BPD patients show deficits in neuropsychological functions of the prefrontal cortex, as well as abnormalities in functional activation of the prefrontal cortex associated with emotion processing using fNIRS. The overall aim of his research program is to identify neurobiological liability markers for BPD which can be used to identify at-risk individuals and focus efforts at early intervention and prevention. Moreover, these putative intermediate phenotypes may assist researchers in isolating specific susceptibility genes for BPD.