About

Stephanie Groman, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Anesthesia and Critical Care at the University of Chicago. Her research program investigates the neurobiological mechanisms of decision-making in both normal and pathological states, with a particular focus on addiction. Her lab integrates behavioral paradigms with computational analyses, neuroimaging approaches, systems-level manipulations, and molecular analyses in rodents to generate mechanistic links between genes, signaling mechanisms, and behavior that can help understand the pathology of addiction. Her work includes studying the mesocorticolimbic system in stimulant use disorder, reward-guided decision-making functions, sex differences in drug-taking behaviors, and the neurobiology of addiction-related behaviors.

Research topics

• Psychiatry
• Social psychology
• Computer Science
• Psychology
• Cognitive psychology
• Artificial Intelligence
• Medicine
• Environmental health
• Economics

Selected publications

• High-resolution in utero SV2A PET imaging of the nonhuman primate brain using the NeuroEXPLORER

  Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism · 2026-03-13

  articleOpen access

  The NeuroEXPLORER (NX), a next generation brain-dedicated PET scanner, has demonstrated improved spatial resolution and sensitivity compared with previous PET scanners. In this study, we performed synaptic vesicle glycoprotein 2A (SV2A) PET, an in vivo marker of synaptic density, to evaluate the performance of the NX in both fetal and maternal brains of four pregnant rhesus macaques. Results were compared with the previously acquired PET images using miniEXPLORER and Biograph mCT for fetal and maternal brains (four pregnant monkeys per scanner). The NX demonstrated superior performance compared with the other scanners, providing improved image clarity and higher distribution volume ratios (DVRs), which were significant in the occipital region and putamen of the fetal brain ( p < 0.05, FDR uncorrected), as well as across all regions in the maternal brain ( p < 0.05, FDR corrected). The percentage difference in mean regional DVR between maternal and fetal brains ranged from 36.1% in the amygdala to 78.3% in the occipital lobe in the NX, which may reflect regional differences in the phase of synaptic development. This study highlights the NX as a promising non-invasive tool for investigating in utero synaptic development. The presence of in utero motion emphasizes the necessity of motion correction for reliable PET quantification.

  PublisherDOI

• The mesocorticolimbic system in stimulant use disorder

  Molecular Psychiatry · 2025-09-10 · 3 citations

  reviewOpen access

  Stimulant Use Disorder (StUD) is a pervasive and extremely dangerous form of addiction for which there are currently no approved medications. Discovering treatments will require a deep understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying the behavioral effects of stimulant drugs. A major target is the mesocorticolimbic system. Individual differences in mesocorticolimbic function can influence the propensity to initiate stimulant use and the risk for stimulant use disorders. Since repeated stimulant use can further alter mesocorticolimbic function, these pathways may serve as a target for both early interventions aimed at preventing the onset of harmful stimulant use and treatments designed to alleviate addiction symptoms. Here we review evidence from studies in both humans and laboratory animals, focusing on the neurotransmitter systems most strongly implicated in StUD, primarily dopamine and, to a lesser extent, glutamate. We identify evidence of (i) complex, non-linear perturbations to mesocorticolimbic function related to stimulant use, and (ii) gaps in knowledge and opportunities for research to improve our understanding of the determinants and consequences of StUD.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Disruptions in Reward-Guided Decision-Making Functions Are Predictive of Greater Oral Oxycodone Self-Administration in Male and Female Rats

  Biological Psychiatry Global Open Science · 2025-01-21 · 2 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  Problematic opioid use that emerges in a subset of individuals may be due to preexisting disruptions in the biobehavioral mechanisms that regulate drug use. The identity of these mechanisms is not known, but emerging evidence suggests that suboptimal decision making that is observable prior to drug use may contribute to the pathology of addiction. The current study investigated the relationship between decision-making phenotypes and opioid-taking behaviors in male and female Long Evans rats. Adaptive decision-making processes were assessed using a probabilistic reversal learning task and oxycodone- (or vehicle, as a control) taking behaviors assessed daily in 32 sessions using a saccharin fading procedure that promoted dynamic intake of oxycodone. Tests of motivation, extinction, and reinstatement were also performed. Computational analyses of decision-making data identified data-driven metrics that predicted self-administration of oxycodone and addiction-relevant behaviors. Moreover, preexisting impairments in reward-guided decision making observed in female rats were associated with greater addiction-relevant behaviors when compared with males. These results provide new insights into the biobehavioral mechanisms that regulate opiate-taking behaviors and offer a novel phenotypic approach for interrogating sex differences in addiction susceptibility and opioid use disorders. Only a small subset of individuals who are exposed to opiates such as oxycodone will develop an opioid use disorder. However, identification of these at-risk individuals prior to drug exposure has not been possible. We hypothesized that decision making could be a predictor of problematic oxycodone use. To test this hypothesis, decision-making and oral oxycodone self-administration behaviors were assessed in adult rats. Deficits in reward-guided decision making were found to predict oxycodone use and explain the problematic oxycodone use that we observed in female rats. These data indicate that decision-making phenotypes can serve as a biomarker of opiate risk in drug-naïve individuals.

  PublisherDOI

• Sex differences in oxycodone-taking behaviors are linked to disruptions in reward-guided, decision-making functions

  bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) · 2024-04-11 · 1 citations

  preprintOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  Problematic opioid use that emerges in a subset of individuals may be due to pre-existing disruptions in the biobehavioral mechanisms that regulate drug use. The identity of these mechanisms is not known, but emerging evidence suggests that suboptimal decision-making that is observable prior to drug use may contribute to the pathology of addiction and, notably, serve as a powerful phenotype for interrogating biologically based differences in opiate-taking behaviors. The current study investigated the relationship between decision-making phenotypes and opioid-taking behaviors in male and female Long Evans rats. Adaptive decision-making processes were assessed using a probabilistic reversal-learning task and oxycodone- (or vehicle, as a control) taking behaviors assessed for 32 days using a saccharin fading procedure that promoted dynamic intake of oxycodone. Tests of motivation, extinction, and reinstatement were also performed. Computational analyses of decision-making and opioid-taking behaviors revealed that attenuated reward-guided decision-making was associated with greater self-administration of oxycodone and addiction-relevant behaviors. Moreover, pre-existing impairments in reward-guided decision-making observed in female rats was associated with greater oxycodone use and addiction-relevant behaviors when compared to males. These results provide new insights into the biobehavioral mechanisms that regulate opiate-taking behaviors and offer a novel phenotypic approach for interrogating sex differences in addiction susceptibility and opioid use disorders.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Lesions to the mediodorsal thalamus, but not orbitofrontal cortex, enhance volatility beliefs linked to paranoia

  Cell Reports · 2024-06-01 · 17 citations

  articleOpen access

  Beliefs-attitudes toward some state of the environment-guide action selection and should be robust to variability but sensitive to meaningful change. Beliefs about volatility (expectation of change) are associated with paranoia in humans, but the brain regions responsible for volatility beliefs remain unknown. The orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is central to adaptive behavior, whereas the magnocellular mediodorsal thalamus (MDmc) is essential for arbitrating between perceptions and action policies. We assessed belief updating in a three-choice probabilistic reversal learning task following excitotoxic lesions of the MDmc (n = 3) or OFC (n = 3) and compared performance with that of unoperated monkeys (n = 14). Computational analyses indicated a double dissociation: MDmc, but not OFC, lesions were associated with erratic switching behavior and heightened volatility belief (as in paranoia in humans), whereas OFC, but not MDmc, lesions were associated with increased lose-stay behavior and reward learning rates. Given the consilience across species and models, these results have implications for understanding paranoia.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Review for "Nucleus accumbens and dorsal medial striatal dopamine and neural activity are essential for action sequence performance"

  2023-05-08

  peer-review1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Review for "Nucleus accumbens and dorsal medial striatal dopamine and neural activity are essential for action sequence performance"

  2023-09-13

  peer-review1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Lesions to the mediodorsal thalamus but not orbitofrontal cortex enhance volatility beliefs linked to paranoia

  2023-10-10

  preprintOpen access

  Beliefs – attitudes toward some state of the environment – guide action selection and should be robust to variability but sensitive to meaningful change. Beliefs about volatility (expectation of change) are associated with paranoia in humans yet the brain regions responsible for volatility beliefs remain unknown. Orbitofrontal cortex (OFC) is central to adaptive behavior whereas magnocellular mediodorsal thalamus (MDmc) is essential for arbitrating between perceptions and action policies. We assessed belief updating in a three-choice probabilistic reversal-learning task following excitotoxic lesions of MDmc (n=3) or OFC (n=3) and compared performance with that of unoperated rhesus macaques (n=14). Computational analyses indicated that lesions of the MDmc, but not OFC, were associated with erratic switching behavior and heightened volatility belief (as in paranoia in humans). In contrast, OFC lesions were associated with increased lose-stay behavior and reward learning rates. Given the consilience across species and models these results have implications for understanding paranoia.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Adolescent reinforcement-learning trajectories predict cocaine-taking behaviors in adult male and female rats

  Psychopharmacology · 2022-06-16 · 11 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Imaging the fetal nonhuman primate brain with SV2A positron emission tomography (PET)

  European Journal of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging · 2022-05-28 · 14 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• Identification of a non-invasive neuroimaging biomarker of prenatal synaptic development

  NIH · $712k · 2019–2024

• NIH Grant F31DA028812

  NIH · $100k · 2013

Frequent coauthors

• Jane R. Taylor

  54 shared

• Christoph Mathys

  52 shared

• J. David Jentsch

  Binghamton University

  31 shared

• Philip R. Corlett

  Yale University

  26 shared

• Daeyeol Lee

  21 shared

• Praveen Suthaharan

  Yale University

  19 shared

• Subhojit Chakraborty

  University of Oxford

  18 shared

• Justin Hill

  Twin Cities Orthopedics

  12 shared

Labs

• Groman LabPI

Education

• Ph.D., Neurobiology

  University of Chicago

• B.A.

  University of Chicago