Research summary
Almost 12 per cent of Canadians aged 18 years or older have some sort of mood or anxiety disorder. Although these disorders are a major public health concern, it is not known exactly how anxiety is generated by the brain. Yet this information is critical in order to better understand pathological anxiety disorders.
Dr. Jesse Jackson, Canada Research Chair in Neural Circuits, is exploring how brain regions connected to the prefrontal cortex—a key region known to control anxiety—contribute to anxiety-related neural activities and behaviours. Using mouse models to measure and manipulate the functional connectivity of prefrontal cortex networks during anxiety, Jackson and his research team hope to provide insight into the neural connections that control anxiety levels.