Grant: Project Grant

Stress signaling in the brain is critical for adaptation in the face of various challenges. Adaptation to stress requires the engagement of specific brain circuits that control production of stress hormones including cortisol, including the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. Overactivation of HPA axis however, results in pathological stress that can contribute to psychiatric disorders including anxiety depression. As the number of people in Canada living with anxiety and depression continues to rise, there is a pressing need to understand the brain circuits that regulate stress hormone levels and how these circuits malfunction in stress-related disorders. In this project, we set out to investigate the fundamental mechanism underlying regulation of the stress hormone production with a specific focus on previously overlooked cells in the HPA axis - astrocytes. Our previous work has shown that astrocytes are highly sensitive to stress and that they drive various negative impacts of stress on behaviour. With this in mind, we hypothesize that these brain cells play a key role in regulating the HPA axis. This project will bring together distinct research teams with expertise spanning metabolism, astrocyte biology, synaptic function, as well as stress signaling to reveal the role of astrocytes in the neuroendocrine control of stress adaptation.