Neurobiology of stress
We combine behavioral, physiological, functional neuroanatomical, and cellular approaches to unravel the neural circuitry that underlies adaptive neuroendocrine responses to stress. Recently we have identified a locus in the basal forebrain that serves as a neural hub for integrating and relaying information between the limbic forebrain and neuroendocrine effectors in the hypothalamus. We now use this system to examine the cellular and circuit-induced alterations that contribute to chronic stress-induced neuroendocrine dysfunction.