Brenda Penninx

Brenda Penninx, PhD, is professor at the department of Psychiatry of Amsterdam UMC, Vrije Universiteit in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. She is principal investigator of various large-scale Dutch cohort studies on the development and course of Depressive and Anxiety Disorders, such as the Netherlands Study of Depression and Anxiety Disorders (www.nesda.nl) and the MARIO project (www.mario-project.nl). Her research focus is on the role of biopsychosocial factors (e.g. genetics, biomarkers, neuroimaging, lifestyle, social function) in the etiology and consequences of depressive and anxiety disorders, and whether intervening on these factors contributes to better mental health. She currently supervises ~10 postdocs/assistant professors and 15 PhD students (>60 already successfully graduated under her guidance). Dr. Penninx is member and current vice-president of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Sciences and Arts.