BOSTON, MASS., June 7, 2007 Nearly 150 basic and clinical scientists will assemble in Boston this week to better understand the role of the central nervous system in conditions such as postpartum depression and female anxiety at the Parental Brain Conference at Bostons Back Bay Hilton. The event begins at 7 p.m. on Thursday, June 7.
The four-day event, hosted by Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University faculty member Robert S. Bridges, Ph.D., will bring together some of the leading minds on maladaptive parental response to share state-of-the-art methods and compare findings on several species, including humans. Leading gender biologist David R. Rubinow, M.D., Chair of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, will deliver the conferences keynote lecture, Postpartum depression: Context-Dependent Effects of Reproductive Steroids.
Most mammals, including humans, experience postpartum changes in behavior and emotional state, as well as similar maladaptive responsesand yet so little is known about the underlying mechanisms that cause them, said Robert S. Bridges, Ph.D., professor and head of the Section of Reproductive Biology at the Cummings School and host of the conference. It is our hope in gathering these top minds that we might come closer to understanding parenting.
The Parental Brain Conference will include 11 symposia on topics ranging from maternal stress, anxiety and depression to bi-parental care. Conference supporters include National Institutes of Health, Cummings School Deans Fund, Mother-Infant Conference at Montreals Douglas Hospital, Tufts University Office of the Vice Provost for Research, University of Richmond, British Society for Neuroendocrinology, Boston College, and The Heinz Family Philanthropies.
'"/>
Contact: Thomas Keppeler
tom.keppeler@tufts.edu
508-839-7910
Tufts University, Health Sciences
6-Jun-2007