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| March 7th 2012 | Lecture/Reading |
| Time | 4:00 pm |
| Campus | UM |
| Location | Massachusetts Room, Mullin Center |
| Title | Stress, Puberty, & Mental Health- Remodeling of the Brain's Response to Hormones |
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The campus community is invited to attend the third 2011-2012
Distinguished Faculty Lecture on Wednesday, March 7th, at 4 pm in the Massachusetts Room, Mullins Center. Professor Jeffrey Blaustein from the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience and Behavior Program will present "Stress, Puberty, & Mental Health- Remodeling of the Brain's Response to Hormones." This lecture is free and open to the public and a reception will immediately follow the talk. Professor Blaustein will receive the Chancellor's Medal, the highest honor bestowed to faculty by the campus. Professor Blaustein is a pioneer in behavioral neuroendocrinology ? the study of how hormones act on the nervous system to influence behavior and mental health. He discovered in animal models that, while hormones influence cells of the brain by acting on hormone-specific receptors, and consequently behavior, receptors for the hormones can also be regulated by stress and stimulation from the surrounding environment. Stress encountered during puberty in mice, for example, actually remodels the brain, permanently altering its response to ovarian hormones. These findings, although made in mice, have great promise to help us understand mental health as an entire complex of interactions between hormones, the environment, and the nervous system. Additional information about the 2011-2012 Distinguished Faculty Lecture Series is available at http://www.umass.edu/umhome/facultylectures/ |
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