This week Clint speaks with Dr. Shawn McNeil & Dr. Donard.  In this conversation they explore the latest research and clinical practices in psychiatry, focusing on schizophrenia, genetic testing, early detection, and the impact of AI on mental health.    Dr. Shawn McNeil hosts an Apple podcast, "Addiction Medicine: Beyond the Abstract" Addiction Medicine: Beyond the Abstract - Podcast - Apple Podcasts. A quarterly, interactive addiction journal club was discussed, paired with presentation Dr. McNeil discusses on his podcast. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/addiction-medicine-beyond-the-abstract/id1806152019   Biography Dr. Shawn McNeil is a physician and researcher at LSU Health Shreveport. He is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine and serves as Program Director of the Psychiatry Residency Program and Director of Neuroinformatics Research. He is a diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry & Neurology and is board-certified in General Psychiatry and Child & Adolescent Psychiatry. He completed his Psychiatry residency at LSU Health Shreveport and is a recipient of the Resident Recognition Award from the American Psychiatric Association (APA). He also completed his fellowship in Child & Adolescent Psychiatry at LSU Health, serving as chief resident of the program.   Clinically, Dr. McNeil practices at Louisiana Behavioral Health where he serves as Chief Medical Officer. He also supervises residents at the Ochsner LSU Health Ambulatory Care Center. His primary research is clinical in nature. He is Principal Investigator on a clinical trial (Apathy in Schizophrenia, Intra-Cellular Therapies, Inc.) at the LSU Health Psychiatry Research Clinic which is investigating the use of Lumateperone on motivation in patients with psychotic disorders. He previously worked on the Blüm Autism Study (sponsored by Curemark) and the Tapestry Autism Study (sponsored by Axial Therapeutics). He is also the Director of Clinical Research for the Louisiana Addiction Research Center.   Dr. McNeil serves as President of the Louisiana Psychiatric Medical Association (LPMA). He is on the editorial board of the Journal of Addiction Medicine (JAM) and is host of their podcast "Addiction Medicine: Beyond the Abstract". He is a 2018 recipient of the ASAM's Ruth Fox Memorial Endowment Scholarship. He has also served on the editorial board of the APA’s American Journal of Psychiatry Resident’s Journal and he has been recognized as a Fellow of the APA.   Dr. McNeil was previously a staff physician at the Overton Brooks VA Medical Center and treated veterans in the Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Clinic. He continues to proudly serve as a Deputy Coroner of Caddo Parish, Louisiana.     Donard Dwyer, PhD Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine   Biography Donard Dwyer received his BS degree in Psychology from Tulane University, a Master’s degree in education (MEd) from the University of Rochester and his PhD from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). In addition, to holding positions as a Research Scientist at the Max-Planck Society laboratories in Würzburg, Germany and Director of Immunology at a Cambridge biotechnology company, Dr. Dwyer has spent 32 years in academic research at UAB and LSU Health Shreveport. He is currently professor of Psychiatry and Pharmacology, Toxicology and Neuroscience at LSU Health Shreveport. In addition, he is Vice-Chair for Research in the Department of Psychiatry.   His research interests range broadly from the evolution of protein ligand-receptor interactions, the electronic properties of amino acids and regulation of glucose transport in neurons to behavioral genetics of motivation and movement in C. elegans and the genetic basis for schizophrenia and neuropsychiatric disorders. He is currently focused on the role of insulin signaling pathways in regulation of motivation in “suicidal” worms and characterization of the genetic architecture of schizophrenia with mathematical approaches. Finally, his laboratory is searching for drugs that produce neuroenhancement in cultured neurons as potential treatments for an array of neuropsychiatric conditions.     Medical Trial: https://www.lsuhs.edu/departments/school-of-medicine/psychiatry-and-behavioral-medicine/research   Chapters 00:00 Introduction to the Podcast and Guests 02:27 Overview of Schizophrenia and Motivation Challenges 04:23 The New Drug Adalumid Teparone and Its Potential 07:50 Understanding Schizophrenia: Causes and Risk Factors 12:04 Genetics of Schizophrenia: Myths and Realities 16:20 Enrolling Patients in Clinical Trials 20:49 Genetic Testing and Personalized Medicine in Psychiatry 25:54 Early Signs of Psychosis in Children 30:50 Supporting Families and Community Resources 40:04 The Role of AI in Future Psychiatry 52:17 AI and the Risks of Artificial Relationships 56:35 Conclusion: Hope and the Future of Mental Health Care