Description:

The department of Physiology welcomes Francis S. Lee, Ph.D.

Abstract: Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a growth factor that is dynamically expressed in the brain across postnatal development, regulating neuronal differentiation and synaptic plasticity. The neurotrophic hypothesis of psychiatric mood disorders postulates that in the adult brain, decreased BDNF levels leads to altered neural plasticity, contributing to disease. Although BDNF has been established as a key factor regulating the critical period plasticity in the developing visual system, it has recently been shown to also play a role in fear circuitry maturation, which has implications for the emergence of fear-related mood disorders. In this talk I will provide a detailed overview of developmental changes in expression of BDNF isoforms, as well as their receptors (TrkB, p75, SorCS2) across postnatal life. In addition, recent developmental studies utilizing a human genetic BDNF single nucleotide polymorphism (Val66Met; rs6265) knock-in mouse highlight the impact of BDNF on fear learning during a sensitive period spanning the transition into adolescent time frame. We hypothesize that BDNF isoforms in the developing brain regulates fear circuit plasticity during a sensitive period in early adolescence, and alterations in BDNF expression have a persistent impact on fear learning and fear-related disorders.