Role of glutamate’s metabotropic receptors in the mechanisms underlying anxiety and the establishment of emotional memory in females.

We investigate the role of metabotropic glutamate receptors (mGluRs) in anxiety-related behaviors and emotional memory at the cellular and behavioral level. Anxiolytics are one of the most prescribed and abused medications in the U.S. Females are twice as likely to develop anxiety disorders than males, suggesting that gonadal hormones play a role in the etiology of anxiety-related behaviors. Understanding the contribution of sex steroids in modulating anxiety and emotional memory and how males and females respond to pharmacotherapy is of relevance for the treatment of anxiety-related disorders and is the major focus of the research carried out in our laboratory. We perform different behavioral tests, such as the light and dark, the elevated plus maze, the voguel conflict test and the passive avoidance task to elucidate the role of group I mGluR agonists in the basolateral amygdala. For the cellular/molecular approach we perform immunohistochemistry and western blot analysis to study protein levels of group I mGluRs as well as to study if there is colocalization between estrogen and mGluR receptors.