[CTN] a few more talks at Laurier -- of possible interest

[Matthijs van der Meer]

=== Talk 1 ===

Dr. Fiona D. Zeeb, Postdoctoral Fellow, Centre for Addiction and Mental
Health (CAMH),Toronto, ON

February 26, 2014, 11:00 AM - 12:30 PM, N1046 (Dean's Board Room),
Science Bldg, WLU.

Title: Investigating the neurobiology of self-control and reward processing

Abstract: Poor self-control and deficits in reward processing are
present in numerous psychiatric disorders, including substance abuse,
pathological gambling, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder,
depression, and schizophrenia. I use pre-clinical models to improve our
understanding of the neurobiological basis of these processes. Distinct
aspects of self-control can be studied in rats by employing different
tests of decision-making and impulsivity. During the talk, I will
summarize the main findings from my research using the rat gambling task
(rGT), a rodent model of risky decision-making, as well as tests of
impulsive behaviour. Specifically, I will discuss how acute
pharmacological manipulations of the dopamine and serotonin system alter
self-control, the impact of chronic serotonin depletion on the rGT, and
the roles of the orbitofrontal cortex and basolateral amygdala (and
their functional connectivity) on decision-making. To quantify an
animal's motivation to obtain reward, I have used two different
paradigms: responding for brain stimulation reward and responding for a
conditioned reinforcer. Data from experiments that used both tasks will
be presented, and I will also discuss how amphetamine and a specific
serotonin 2C receptor agonist may influence these behaviours. I have
also begun to explore the relationship between self-control and reward
processing; therefore, I will also discuss a recent study that assessed
how trait levels of impulsivity predict the willingness to obtain a
conditioned reinforcer, and how these behaviours may be related to
dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens.


=== Talk 2 ===

Francis R. Bambico, PhD, postdoctoral fellow, Centre for Addiction and
Mental Health, Univ of Toronto

March 4, 2014, 10:15 AM, N1046 (Dean's Board Room), Science Bldg, WLU

Title: The Brain in the Mood: Preclinical Investigations into Novel
Antidepressant Targets

Abstract: Mood disorders, particularly depression, are among the most
prevalent mental health problems, with complex etiopathogenesis and for
which limited treatments are available. Dr. Bambico employs animal
models to understand the pathological changes in the central monoamine
and endocannabinoid systems associated with mood and anxiety disorders.
Based on these behavioural and electrophysiological investigations, he
has identified neurophysiological markers of depressive and anxiety-like
states in rodents subjected to chronic unpredictable stress, early
parental (paternal) deprivation and chronic adolescent exposure to
cannabinoids. He examines the role of novel brain targets on reversing
these abnormalities, with the ultimate goal of developing alternative,
more efficacious and rapid-acting antidepressant treatments. These
antidepressant targets include the cannabinoid CB1 receptor, the small
conductance calcium-activated potassium (SK) channel, as well as
muscarinic receptors and mTOR, which represent putative molecular
mediators of rapid antidepressant action. He also investigates the
antidepressant/anxiolytic action of deep brain stimulation (DBS). He
postulates an interplay between synaptogenesis-dependent mechanisms
linked to the rapid initiation of the therapeutic action of DBS and
other antidepressant drugs, and hippocampal neurogenesis mediating
long-term maintenance and expression of antidepressant action.