Contemporary Developments in Catecholamine Neurobiology and Function

The 2017 GRC on Catecholamines will focus on cutting-edge developments in catecholamine research from a broad range of approaches from molecular biology to cellular physiology to behavior and clinical studies. One of the characteristics of the field is that neuronal systems using catecholamines have much in common, although investigators who focus on particular catecholamines or on different actions of the same catecholamine are often unaware of complementary aspects of catecholamine research. It is increasingly apparent that continued progress will require increasingly integrated approaches in studies of catecholamine biology, function and dysfunction. Thus, molecular biologists are being drawn to more integrated systems approaches and behavioral biologists are exploiting many molecular approaches. In particular, the development of cell-type-specific targeting approaches in recent years has permitted much more detailed and specific approaches to understanding catecholamine function. The past years have also witnessed a tremendous advance in our understanding of neuropsychiatric and neurological disorders, including drug abuse, affective disorders, and diseases associated with catecholamine neuron degeneration such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. Sophisticated behavioral measures combined with elegant molecular, cellular and systems approaches, along with powerful imaging studies in humans, have produced a large number of high-profile reports that are likely to have a positive impact on health issues. We plan to highlight these new advances to provide a unique opportunity to discuss recent progress in the understanding of how catecholamine systems may contribute to the pathophysiology and treatment of those conditions. To achieve these goals, the 2017 conference will include researchers at the forefront of catecholamine-related research, both junior and senior, presenting primarily new, unpublished research encompassing basic mechanisms of catecholamine neurotransmission, integrated approaches to understand physiology and behavior, and studies of neurological and psychiatric pathology and treatment.