We will also stream this seminar via Zoom.
For the link, contact us: pennmindcore@sas.upenn.edu

Dylan Gee
Departments of Psychology and Psychiatry
Yale University

Early Experiences and Brain Development: Leveraging Developmental Neuroscience to Promote Youth Mental Health

Early adversity is a potent risk factor for the onset and exacerbation of psychopathology. Delineating neurobiological processes related to risk and resilience during development is critical to identifying youth who could most benefit from intervention and for optimizing treatments for youth with psychopathology. Corticolimbic circuitry, which supports emotional learning and regulation, is particularly sensitive to stress and undergoes dynamic changes throughout childhood and adolescence. Leveraging a multimodal approach that includes behavioral experiments, neuroimaging, psychophysiology, and ecological momentary assessment, my program of research has centered on how early experiences shape corticolimbic development and mental health. This talk will highlight developmental and stress-related changes in corticolimbic circuitry, as well as delineate novel approaches to decompose heterogeneity in the effects of adversity. Findings will be discussed in terms of their implications for identifying sensitive periods of neurodevelopment and translating research in developmental affective neuroscience into more precise clinical interventions for anxiety and stress-related disorders.

Pizza will be served. Please bring your own beverage!