The focus of this group is on hormone actions in the brain. We aim to delineate the cellular and network effects of stress hormones in limbic brain regions, to resolve the underlying molecular mechanisms and to understand the functional consequences for behavior, in health and disease. By linking investigations at multiple levels of complexity we try to come to a full comprehension, from the molecular to the network and behavioral level.

Stress hormones on the short term are necessary to adapt to challenges and restore homeostasis. However, if stress is experienced repetitively the responses can become maladaptive. This may eventually lead to stress-related disorders in predisposed individuals. We investigate the effects of chronic stress on cellular and network function in limbic circuits. Our objective is to resolve the mechanisms by which chronic stress slowly changes the function of limbic circuits and to develop new strategies to prevent or normalize these effects of chronic stress.

Specific themes are :

• Stress in health and disease (overview)
• Stress, learning and plasticity
• Rapid and delayed stress effects
• Cell proliferation in health and disease

Key publications

• Charlotte A. Oomen, Heleen Soeters, Nathalie Audureau, Lisa Vermunt, Felisa N. van Hasselt, Erik M. M. Manders, Marian Joëls, Paul J. Lucassen, and Harm Krugers (2010)
  Severe early life stress hampers spatial learning and neurogenesis, but improves hippocampal synaptic plasticity and emotional learning under high-stress conditions in adulthood
  Journal of Neuroscience vol 30(19) : 6635-6645         abstract/PDF

• Champagne DL, RC Bagot, F van Hasselt, G Ramakers, MJ Meaney, ER de Kloet, M Joëls, H Krugers. (2008)
  Maternal care and hippocampal plasticity: evidence for experience-dependent structural plasticity,
  altered synaptic functioning, and differential responsiveness to glucocorticoids and stress.
  Journal of Neuroscience vol 28 : 6037-6045         abstract/PDF

• Liebmann L, H Karst, K Sidiropoulou, N van Gemert, OC Meijer, P Poirazi, M Joëls (2008)
  Differential effects of corticosterone on the slow afterhyperpolarization in the basolateral amygdala
  and CA1 region : possible role of calcium channel subunits.
  Journal of Neurophysiology (99) : 958-968         abstract/PDF

• Joëls M, H Karst, R DeRijk, ER de Kloet (2008)
  The coming out of the brain mineralocorticoid receptor.
  Trends in Neurosciences 2008; 31:1-7

• Joëls M, H Karst, HJ Krugers, PJ Lucassen (2007)
  Chronic stress: Implications for neuron morphology, function and neurogenesis
  Front Neuroendocrinol. 2007; 28(2-3):72-96.

• Joëls M, Pu Z, Wiegert O, Oitzl MS, Krugers HJ. (2006)
  Learning under stress: how does it work? Trends Cogn Sci. 2006 10: 152-158.

• Karst H, Berger S, Turiault M, Tronche F, Schütz, G, Joëls M. (2005)
  Mineralocorticoid receptors are indispensable for nongenomic modulation of hippocampal glutamate transmission by corticosterone. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 102: 19204-7.