CENTER FOR BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE
Established in 1999 as a National Science Foundation Science and Technology Center, the Center for Behavioral Neuroscience works to elucidate the basic neurobiology of social behavior, memory, cognition, reward functions and positive emotional states. It is also focused on educating new generations of research scientists and the public in innovative, interdisciplinary ways.
Dr. Debbie Bangasser is a Professor of Neuroscience, a Georgia Research Alliance Distinguished Investigator, and the Director of the Center for Behavioral Neuroscience. Dr. Bangasser is the Principal Investigator of the Neuroendocrinology and Behavior Laboratory, which investigates how stress across the lifespan alters vulnerability/resilience to substance use disorder, depression, and anxiety disorders. Dr. Bangasser’s research program received the Janett Rosenberg Trubatch Career Development Award from the Society for Neuroscience, which recognizes originality and creativity in research, and an American Psychological Association Presidential Citation.
The Center for Behavioral Neuroscience uses advanced techniques from brain imaging to molecular methods. Researchers in the center have identified a brain chemical that could have implications in treating autism, pioneered new methods to diagnose and treat post-traumatic stress disorder and examined brain signaling systems related to obesity. They have also determined the genetic sequence of an antimicrobial protein found in the ink of a common sea slug — a protein that could be used in the development of new products to prevent or kill damaging microbes and save the marine and healthcare industries billions of dollars each year.
Through programs such as Brain Camp for middle-schoolers, the Institute on Neuroscience for high-schoolers and BRAIN for undergraduate students, the center has created a unique pipeline approach to educating and training the next generation of neuroscientists.