Psychiatrist Henry Lesse Dies of Injury

Henry Lesse, a psychiatrist who was among the first researchers to implant electrodes into the deep structures of the brain to study the relationship between electrical activity and learning, emotional responses and addictions, died July 11 of complications of a head injury.

The first director of research for the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute was 60 and died in a San Fernando Valley hospital.

His early studies were the first to show that intrinsic brain rhythms can be conditioned by behavioral signals. Most recently Dr. Lesse had been focusing on the role of cocaine and alcohol in inducing seizures in the brain that often went undetected.

Lesse received his medical degree in 1950 from Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia and came to UCLA in 1958 as a lecturer after training in psychoanalysis at Tulane University.

In 1959 he was named to UCLA’s new neuropsychiatric research department, and from 1976 to 1981 was director of the National Institute Mental Health-sponsored interdisciplinary research training at the neuropsychiatric institute.

He also was a member of the California Department of Mental Hygiene’s research advisory committee, where he helped draft policy guidelines.

Survivors include his wife, Barbara, a son, Steven, and a sister.

A memorial service will be held Monday at the UCLA Neuropsychiatric Institute and Hospital’s auditorium. Donations in lieu of flowers may be sent to the Henry Lesse Memorial Research Fund, 760 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles 90024.