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UID:2026100911032620261203T16000020261203T1700006ac972be2cf0d@uic.edu
CATEGORIES:MEETING
STATUS:TENTATIVE
DTSTAMP:20260409T103458Z
DTSTART:20261203T160000
DTEND:20261203T170000
SUMMARY:LIN Seminar: "Extended Amygdala Neuropeptide Circuit Mechanisms in Stress\, Addiction\, and Sleep/Wake Dysregulation" by Will Giardino (Stanford University)
DESCRIPTION:Join us 12/3/26 at 4pm in SELE 4289 for a LIN Seminar featuring "Extended Amygdala Neuropeptide Circuit Mechanisms in Stress\, Addiction\, and Sleep/Wake Dysregulation" by Dr. Will Giardino (Stanford University)    Giardino Lab    Host: Dennis Sparta    Abstract:    The bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST)\, a central node of the extended amygdala\, coordinates emotional arousal across states of stress\, addiction\, and sleep/wake. My lab studies how peptide-defined BNST neuronal subpopulations govern these overlapping domains. I’ll begin with my work showing that corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) and cholecystokinin (CCK) neurons in the BNST drive opposing emotional states through biased projections onto hypocretin/orexin neurons of the lateral hypothalamus. Building on this framework\, my lab discovered that hypocretin receptor signaling within CRF neurons shapes alcohol drinking\, withdrawal anxiety\, and extended amygdala excitability in a sex-specific manner.    The core of my talk focuses on how early life stress (ELS) reshapes CRF-BNST function and alcohol behaviors. We found that ELS heightens sensitivity to alcohol's stimulant effects\, blunts sensitivity to its sedative effects\, and escalates long-term drinking\, mirroring the human phenotypes that predict risk for alcohol addiction. We traced these changes to sex-specific forms of CRF-BNST hyperexcitability\, and we show that chronically silencing CRF-BNST neurons alters the effects of ELS on alcohol drinking and behaviors.    I then extend these findings to sleep/wake regulation. Our studies reveal that ELS fragments non-REM (NREM) sleep\, that dominance in the social hierarchy tracks with greater NREM sleep in females\, and that inhibiting CRF versus CCK BNST neurons produces dissociable effects on baseline wakefulness and recovery sleep following deprivation. I’ll close with our efforts to link psychiatric GWAS signals to specific human BNST cell types\, developing an integrated view of how extended amygdala neuropeptide circuits convert life experience into lasting shifts in arousal\, addiction\, and sleep. | Event post: https://bios.uic.edu/events?page_id=12423
LOCATION:SELE 4289    Select 
CLASS:PRIVATE
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