Jorge R. Bergado-Acosta

Research Scientist at of Neuropharmacology of Emotional Systems, Institute for Pharmacology and Toxicology at the Otto von Guericke University
Magdeburg

Emotion and motivation determine the relevance of every particular experience, and correspondingly also control what part of this experience should be memorized. Such memories then allow individuals to cope better with future aversive or stressful events. Coping behaviors are also determined by genetic and environmental factors and appear to be critical predisposing factors for the development of affective disorders.

In our lab we investigate neurobiological mechanisms underlying normal and pathological fear-related behaviors. We are particularly interested in neuronal processes involved in the generalization of fear memories. More recently, we started to investigate the process of behavioral tagging as a mechanism facilitating the formation of fear-like but also episodic-like long-term memory.

Keywords: Learning and memory – amygdala-hippocampus – transgenic mice – fear-generalization – behavioral tagging

Location: OVGU (FME)

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