Benjamin C. Reiner
Assistant Professor of Psychiatry
Department: Psychiatry
Graduate Group Affiliations
Contact information
TRL Building, 125 S. 31st St.
Department of Psychiatry
Perelman School of Medicine
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Department of Psychiatry
Perelman School of Medicine
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA 19104
Office: 2155730278
Publications
Education:
BS (Biology, minor Chemistry)
University of Nebraska at Omaha, 2007.
PhD (Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience)
University of Nebraska Medical Center, 2015.
BS (Biology, minor Chemistry)
University of Nebraska at Omaha, 2007.
PhD (Pharmacology and Experimental Neuroscience)
University of Nebraska Medical Center, 2015.
Post-Graduate Training
Postdoctoral Fellowship, Neurogenetics, Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 2016-2020.
Research Associate, Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 2020-2022.
Permanent linkPostdoctoral Fellowship, Neurogenetics, Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 2016-2020.
Research Associate, Department of Psychiatry, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 2020-2022.
Description of Research Expertise
My lab focuses on using behavioral, pharmacological, and intersectional genetic approaches with neural multiomics and downstream bioinformatics in preclinical animal models and postmortem human tissue in psychiatric disease, substance use disorders, and diseases of feeding and energy balance.Selected Publications
Geisler CE, Chichura KS, Orativskyi O, Hu J, Belser D, Pelletier CM, Borner T, Baumer-Harrison C, De Jonghe BC, Crist RC, Reiner BC, Doyle RP, Hayes MR: Hindbrain Octadecaneuropeptide Gliotransmission as a Therapeutic Target for Energy Balance Control Without Nausea/Emesis. Science Translational Medicine 17(808), July 2025.Decaire-Spain L, Gu C, Lauer LT, Subramanian KS, Chehimi SN, Kao AE, Gao SX, Deng I, Bashaw AG, Klug ME, Rea JJ, Waldow AI, Galbokke AH, Donohue KN, Yang M, de Lartigue G, Myers KP, Crist RC, Reiner BC, Hayes MR, Kanoski SE.: Ventral hippocampus neurons encode meal-related memory. Nature Communications 16(1), June 2025.
Chehimi SN, Crist RC, Merkel R, Schmidt HD, Reiner BC.: Beyond Euphoria: Transcriptomic Investigation in the rat Brain Under the Administration of Fentanyl Combined With Xylazine. Drug and Alcohol Dependence 267: 112213, February 2025.
Merkel R, Hernandez NS, Weir V, Zhang Y, Caffrey A, Rich MT, Crist RC, Reiner BC, Schmidt HD: An endogenous GLP-1 circuit engages VTA GABA neurons to regulate mesolimbic dopamine neurons and attenuate cocaine seeking. Science Advances 11(9): eadr5051, February 2025.
Appleby SV, Xiao AG, Harris EP, Levine C, Belser DL, Geisler CE, Parent MB, Bangasser DA, Crist RC, Reiner BC, Hayes MR.: Characterizing brainstem glucagon-like peptide-1 control of sensory-specific-satiety in male and female rats across the estrous cycle. Biological Psychiatry January 2025.
Crist RC, Chehimi SN, Montague MJ, Snyder-Mackler N, Bohlen MO, Chiou KL, Zintel TM, Platt ML, Silvestri G, Hayes MR, Kolson DL, Reiner BC: SIV infection induces alterations in gene expression and loss of interneurons in Rhesus Macaque frontal cortex during early systemic infection. Translational Psychiatry 15(1): 38, January 2025.
Wojick JA, Paranjapye A, Chiu JK, Mahmood M, Oswell C, Kimmey BA, Wooldridge LM, McCall NM, Han A, Ejoh LL, Chehimi SN, Crist RC, Reiner BC, Korb E, Corder G: A nociceptive amygdala-striatal pathway for chronic pain aversion. Science Advances accepted, 2025.
Reitz J, Rosoff DB, Perlstein T, Wagner A, Jung J, Wagner J, Reiner BC, Lohoff FW: Genetically modeled GLP-1R and GIPR agonism reduce binge drinking and alcohol-associated phenotypes: a multi-ancestry drug-target Mendelian randomization study. Molecular Psychiatry in press, 2025.
Applebey SV, Xiao AG, Reiner BC, Hayes MR: The estrous cycle moderates the food and body weight suppressive effects of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonism. Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism in press, 2025.
James J, McCall N, Hsu AI, Oswell C, Salimando G, Mahmood M, Wooldridge L, Wachira M, Jo A, Sandoval Ortega RA, Wojick J, Beattie K, Farinas SA, Chehimi SN***, Rodrigues A, Ejoh L, Kimmey B, Lo Z, Azouz G, Vasquez JJ, Banghart M, Townsend Creasy K, Beier K, Ramakrishnan C, Crist RC, Reiner BC, Deisseroth K, Yttri EA, Corder G: Mimicking opioid analgesia in cortical pain circuits. Nature accepted, 2025.