Experts to discuss on neuroscience of emotion-related disorders

Can feeling happy in older age weaken cognition? Is the prevailing drug treatment model for mood disorders the only option? Is chronic sleep deprivation behind the meltdowns we have at home and at work?

Leading thinkers in the neuroscience of emotion and emotion-related disorders, such as depression, anxiety and debilitating stress, are in Toronto for a three-day conference, March 27-29. They will discuss the latest advances in understanding the brain changes behind these illnesses and the way forward to treat more effectively.

More than 300 scientists, clinicians and academics from around the world are attending the "Neuroscience of Emotion and Emotion-Related Disorders" at The Four Seasons Hotel. The conference is presented by Baycrest, an academic health sciences centre internationally renowned for its care of aging adults and excellence in aging brain research, clinical interventions, and promising cognitive rehabilitation strategies.

Twenty-three scientists from Canada, the U.S. and U.K. will present new data and - in some cases - provocative ideas that are sure to rouse discussion. Highlights include:

Dr. Matt Walker (University of California, Berkeley) will sound the alarm about chronic sleep deprivation in the modern world and how that messes with the emotional circuits in the brain and undermines calm, rational thinking (Sunday, March 27 @ 4:15 p.m.);

Dr. Lynn Hasher and Renee Biss, PhD (Rotman Research Institute at Baycrest) will present surprising evidence that feeling happy in older age may weaken cognition (Monday, March 28 @ 1:30 p.m.);

Dr. Larry Cahill (University of California, Irvine) will lay down a challenge - any scientist studying the neural mechanisms of emotional memory and not looking at sex influences had better be able to justify why not (Keynote Monday, March 28 @ 9 a.m.); and

Dr. Roger McIntyre (University Health Network) will present promising early data on a different approach for treating depression and improving cognitive function in mood disorders - that targets the insulin signalling systems in the brain (Monday, March 28 @ 3:15 p.m.).

This year marks the first time Baycrest's two research units - the world-renowned Rotman Research Institute and the Kunin-Lunenfeld Applied Research Unit (KLARU) - have joined forces to present one of the world's foremost neuroscience conferences.