Corey and Steve talk with MSU Neuroscientist A.J. Robison about why females may be more likely to suffer from depression than males. A.J. reviews past findings that low testosterone and having a smaller hippocampus may predict depression risk. He explains how a serendipitous observation opened up his current line of research and describes tools he uses to study neural circuits. Steve asks about the politics of studying sex differences and tells of a start up using CRISPR to attack heart disease. The three end with a discussion of the psychological effects of ketamine, testosterone and deep brain stimulation.

Topics

01:18 – Link between antidepressants, neurogenesis and reducing risk of depression
13:54 – Nature of Mouse models
23:19 – How you tell whether a mouse exhibits depressive symptoms
32:36 – Liz Williams’ serendipitous finding and the issue of biological sex
45:47 – A.J.’s research plans for circuit specific gene editing in the mouse brain and a start up’s plan to use it to tackle human cardiovascular disease
59:07 – Psychological and Neurological Effects of Ketamine. Testosterone and Deep Brain Stimulation

Resources

Papers

A.J. Robison on the Neural Basis of Sex Differences in Depression – #37

Manifold