The thrust of my research over the past 4 decades has been the relationship between G protein signaling and the cytoskeleton and how this interaction might affect neurotransmitter response and responsiveness as well as synaptic plasticity and mood disorders. My thesis work concerned neurosecretion in insects and this led to an interest in 5HT signaling. As a postdoc, I discovered a relationship between G proteins and tubulin, a subject we have continued to investigate. This interest in tubulin led to our work on the cytoskeleton, which led us to investigate cytoskeletal-associated membrane regions (lipid rafts) and their effects on signaling. We have examined the importance of membrane heterogeneity in neurotransmitter signaling and have learned that lipid rafts can either facilitate or dampen signaling, depending upon the species of receptor and G protein involved. This work also led to an interest in the effects of the plasma membrane lipid microenvironment and how it might affect signaling through G protein coupled receptors (GPCRs). This, coupled with a longstanding interest in the biology of depression and antidepressants, and has allowed us to identify a biomarker, now validated in both post-mortem and peripheral blood tissue, that can be harnessed for diagnosis and treatment of depression, as well as to predict appropriate therapy for the individual patient. Pax Neuroscience was formed to commercialize this and to bring neuroscience and equity into the diagnosis and treatment of depression.  We are also pursuing mechanistic studies of psychedelics as antidepressants.

I have been funded (continuously since 1984) by the NIH, as well as by other federal agencies (VA, NIA, NSF, DOD) and industry sources.  I have served on many scientific review panels (NIH, NSF, DOD, VA), provided extensive editorial activities.  I have received honors both for teaching and research, including the Searle Young Faculty Award from the Chicago Community Trust, the University Scholar Award and Distinguished Faculty Award from the University of Illinois, a Research Scientist Award from the NIMH, and a Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellowship from the Institute of Medicine/National Academy of Sciences.  Dr. Rasenick is a Fellow of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology and he received the 2023 Anna Monika prize for depression research. Additionally, he was elected a member of the National Academy of Science of Cuba.

In addition to research and teaching, I am active in public policy.  I currently chair the American Brain Coalition, which unites patients, providers and neuroscientists to combat stigma and increase neuroscience funding.  While a Robert Wood Johnson Fellow (1999-2000), I was a staff member of the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions with the late Senator Edward M. Kennedy, (D Mass.).  I am also involved in international outreach for neuroscience and have organized programs designed to foster international cooperation in the basic and clinical neurosciences in Vietnam, Cuba and throughout Latin America.  In 1970, I was a member of the People’s Peace Treaty delegation to Hanoi and, more recently, have worked on reconciliation projects in Southeast Asia.