Join this interactive session as Khalid Elsaafien and Eric Krause discuss their paper, “Identification of Novel Cross-Talk between the Neuroendocrine and Autonomic Stress Axes Controlling Blood Pressure” with JNeurosci Editor-in-Chief Marina Picciotto. Attendees can submit questions at registration and live during the webinar.
Below is the significance statement of Identification of Novel Cross-Talk between the Neuroendocrine and Autonomic Stress Axes Controlling Blood Pressure, published on May 26, 2021, in JNeurosci and authored by Khalid Elsaafien, Matthew K. Kirchner, Mazher Mohammed, Sophia A. Eikenberry, Chloe West, Karen A. Scott, Annette D. de Kloet, Javier E. Stern, and Eric G. Krause.
The survival of an organism is dependent on meeting the energetic demands imposed by stressors. This critical function is accomplished by the CNS's ability to orchestrate simultaneous activities of neurosecretory and autonomic axes. Here, we unveil a novel signaling mechanism within the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus that links excitation of neurons producing corticotropin-releasing-hormone with excitation of neurons controlling sympathetic nervous system activity and blood pressure. The implication is that chronic stress exposure may promote cardiometabolic disease by dysregulating the interneuronal cross-talk revealed by our experiments.
Speakers
Marina Picciotto, PhD
Marina Picciotto is the Charles B.G. Murphy Professor of Psychiatry in the Child Study Center of Neuroscience and Pharmacology at Yale University, where she has been on the faculty since 1995. Dr. Picciotto’s research interests lie in understanding the role of molecular signaling in complex behavior, focusing on the function of acetylcholine and its receptors in learning, development, and circuit function. She received her undergraduate degree in biological sciences from Stanford University and her PhD in Molecular Neurobiology from Rockefeller University. She completed her postdoctoral training at the Institute Pasteur in Paris.
Eric G. Krause, PhD
Eric G. Krause, Ph.D. is a tenured associate professor in the department of pharmacodynamics, College of Pharmacy at the University of Florida. Krause also holds University of Florida Term and Research Foundation Professorships and serves as the Director of the Center for Integrative Cardiovascular and Metabolic Disease. His primary area of research investigates specific connections within the brain that promote susceptibility or resiliency to stress-related diseases like mental health and cardiovascular disorders. Krause received a and PhD in neuroscience from Florida State University. Subsequently, he completed postdoctoral training in the department of psychiatry and behavioral neuroscience at the University of Cincinnati.
Khalid Elsaafien, PhD
Khalid Elsaafien is a postdoctoral fellow in the department of pharmacodynamics, College of Pharmacy at the University of Florida. Elsaafien’s research focuses on understanding the interplay between the autonomic nervous system and the cardiovascular system. He earned his BS in neuroscience from the University of Melbourne, and his PhD in neuroscience from the Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health at the University of Melbourne, Australia.
