Why give

What your support makes possible

Federal grants fund specific, established projects. Philanthropy does something different: it lets us chase bold, early-stage ideas before they are fundable, support talented trainees, and sustain the tools and colony infrastructure our science depends on. A gift is an investment in curiosity-driven discovery about how the brain and body shape behavior and health across life.

Early-life brain development

How the infant and adolescent brain builds the circuits for social behavior, attachment, and emotional health.

Body, brain & food allergy

How the immune system and body signal to the brain — reframing food allergy as a systems problem, not only an immune one.

Comparative biology of the armadillo

A one-of-a-kind research colony probing embryonic diapause and the origins of individuality from a single genome.

Trainees & open tools

Training the next generation of scientists and building open-source tools, like VocalMat, that the whole field can use.

Make a gift

Gifts to the Dietrich Lab are made through Yale School of Medicine and directly support trainees, pilot projects, and research tools. To talk about how your support can make a difference, get in touch.

Contact Marcelo about giving

Supported by

Funding partners

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Food Allergy Science Initiative (FASI)

Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI)

Yale School of Medicine

Current grants & awards

The lab’s work is supported by federal grants from the National Institutes of Health, foundation awards, and institutional support from Yale School of Medicine.

  • Regulation of infant social behaviors and learning by the zona incerta

    NIH · NIMHR01 MH142603PI2026–2031

  • Dysregulation of the opioid system in early-life adversity

    NIH · NIMHR01 MH130825MPI (with A. Kaffman)2022–2027

  • Cellular and circuit investigation of age-dependent social behaviors

    NIH · NIMHR21 MH138997PI2025–2027

  • Neuro-immune mechanisms involved in behavioral and physiological responses to food allergens

    Food Allergy Science Initiative2024-FASI-NEURO-YM24316PI2024–2027

  • Robert T. McCloskey Scholar — endowed award

    Yale School of MedicineEndowed Scholar2024–2027

Dr. Dietrich also contributes to an NIH/NIA Program Project on FGF21, healthspan, and longevity (P01 AG051459).

Past support

Completed grants and awards that have supported the lab over the years.

  • NIH · NIMH2020–2025

    R01 — Hypothalamic control of neonatal vocalizations · PI

  • FASI / FARE / Broad Institute Consortium2020–2024

    Untangling neuroimmune communication in food allergy (with R. Medzhitov) · PI

  • Smith Family Foundation2021–2024

    Odyssey Award — opioid-producing neurons in infant attachment · PI

  • Chan Zuckerberg Initiative2020–2023

    Single-cell analysis of inflammation (with N. Palm & A. Wang) · Co-PI

  • HHMI2019–2022

    Gilliam Fellowship for Advanced Studies · Advisor

  • Foundation for Prader-Willi Research2019–2021

    Development of hunger neurons in Prader-Willi syndrome · PI

  • CAPES (Brazil)2018–2021

    Neuroendocrine mechanisms of metabolism and behavior · Co-PI

  • Yale School of Medicine2019–2020

    Reginald & Michiko Spector Award in Neuroscience · PI

  • NIH · NIDDK2015–2020

    R01 — Intracellular dynamics of AgRP neurons across metabolic states · PI

  • CAPES (Brazil)2015–2019

    Interoceptive hypothalamic neurons and cognition · PI

  • Whitehall Foundation2015–2018

    Dissecting interoceptive circuits for cognition · PI

  • Yale Diabetes Research Center (P30)2016–2018

    AgRP neurons in exercise-induced adaptation (pilot) · PI

  • Brain & Behavior Research Foundation2015–2017

    NARSAD Young Investigator Award — AgRP neurons & dopamine · PI

  • Charles H. Hood Foundation2015–2017

    Child Health Research Award — hypothalamic circuits in development · PI

  • Yale Center for Clinical Investigation2014–2016

    Scholar Award — AgRP neurons in anorexia nervosa · PI

  • CNPq (Brazil)2013–2016

    Hypothalamic regulation of cognition & behavior · PI

  • Modern Diet & Physiology Research Center2016–2017

    Circuit linking homeostatic-need neurons to brainstem (pilot) · Co-PI

Awarded and declined: European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant (2021).

We are grateful to every agency, foundation, and donor whose support makes this science possible — and especially to the donors behind the Robert T. McCloskey Scholar fund and the Reginald & Michiko Spector Award in Neuroscience, whose generous gifts to Yale School of Medicine directly support the lab.