Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai · NeuroscienceKenny Lab
Paul J. Kenny · New York, New York
Research Focus
Dr. Paul J. Kenny's lab at the Icahn School of Medicine focuses on understanding the interactions between HIV infection and opioid use disorder (OUD). The research examines how HIV affects brain function in regions involved in motivation, reward, and addiction, specifically looking at the cellular and molecular mechanisms that lead to increased vulnerability to opioids in HIV-infected individuals. By utilizing advanced techniques like single-cell RNA sequencing and CRISPR gene editing, the lab aims to uncover new insights into how these two conditions exacerbate each other and influence behavior.
HIVopioid use disordernucleus accumbensspatial transcriptomicsCRISPR
Research Aims
3AIM 01Analyze sequencing data to identify molecular changes in brain cell types due to HIV and opioids.
AIM 02Map brain circuitry to understand functional adaptations in neurons responding to drugs and HIV.
AIM 03Employ CRISPR technology to target and study key genes affected by HIV and opioid interactions.
Skills the Lab Values
single-nucleus RNA sequencingspatial transcriptomicsCRISPR-Cas9whole-cell electrophysiologygenetic manipulation
Output against the department
Publications223top 33% of dept.220th of 671
this lab
most publishedleast published
Citations19ktop 22% of dept.149th of 671
this lab
most citedleast cited
Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.