NEW YORK, June 25, 2015 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation today announced new topics for its monthly webinar series during which leading mental health researchers discuss and answer questions about the latest in new technologies, early intervention strategies and next-generation therapies for brain and behavior disorders and mental illness. 

The lineup includes researchers from Harvard Medical School, the National Institute of Drug Abuse, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, University of California Los Angeles, University of Texas Southwestern Medical School and Mount Sinai School of Medicine discussing the latest findings in borderline personality disorder, addiction, depression, mood disorders, schizophrenia and autism, respectively.

"These popular webinars offer caregivers, families and loved ones access to some of the world's top scientists who discuss cutting-edge research that could lead to breakthroughs which will help alleviate much of the suffering caused by mental illness," said Dr. Jeffrey Borenstein, M.D., President & CEO of the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation and host of the award-winning public television series "Healthy Minds."  

Each of the hour-long webinars moderated by Dr. Borenstein includes a presentation by the noted researchers, followed by an opportunity for audience Q&A. Each webinar will be live tweeted with the hashtag #brainchat. After the live event, recordings of the webinars will be available on the Foundation's website at: bbrfoundation.org/meet-the-scientist-webinar-series.

The upcoming webinars are:

July 14, 2-3 p.m. EDT
BORDERLINE PERSONALITY DISORDER
D. Bradford Reich, M.D., McLean Hospital and Assistant Clinical Professor of Psychiatry Harvard Medical School, will discuss his research on the neurobiological distinction between the two conditions and his hypothesis that emotional instability in borderline patients involves increased activity in the amygdala and decreased activity in the anterior cingulate cortex, and that emotional instability in bipolar II patients involves decreased activity in the ventrolateral prefrontal cortex.

August 19, 2-3 p.m. EDT
ADDICTION
Nora D. Volkow, M.D., Director of the National Institute of Drug Abuse and the National Institutes of Health, will discuss the effects of drugs in the human brain and how drug addiction is a brain disease. Her research includes the neurochemical mechanisms responsible for variability in response to drugs among individuals; the rewarding and therapeutic effects of drugs; and changes in the dopamine system that occur with aging.

September 8, 2-3 p.m. EDT 
NEW APPROACHES IN TREATING DEPRESSION
Fritz A. Henn, M.D., Ph.D., Professor at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory and Professor of Psychiatry at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, will discuss his research in attempting to use animals modeling depression to identify the genes altered by aversive experience, which may contribute to depression. His lab is beginning clinical tests with patients using deep brain stimulation and patented a class of drugs that may reverse the altered excitatory transmission in the cortex.

October 13, 2-3 p.m. EDT
MOOD DISORDERS
Carrie E. Bearden, Ph.D., Associate Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences and Psychology at University of California, Los Angeles, will discuss her research on identifying genetic and biological vulnerability markers for mood disorders. She has been using converging methodologies to study clinical high-risk samples and highly penetrant 'genetic subtypes' of different mood disorders.

November 10, 2-3 p.m. EDT
SCHIZOPHRENIA
Carol A Tamminga, M.D., Professor and Chair of Psychiatry and Chief of Translational Neuroscience Research in Schizophrenia at the University of Texas (UT) Southwestern Medical School, will discuss her research which seeks to define predictors and understand the mechanism of treatment response for psychotic disorders. Dr. Tamminga co-founded the International Congress on Schizophrenia Research and continues to direct its activities.

December 15, 2-3 p.m. EDT
AUTISM AND NEW FINDINGS
Joseph Buxbaum, Ph.D., Professor of Psychiatry, Neuroscience, Genetics and Genomic Sciences, and Director of Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment at Mount Sinai School of Medicine, will discuss his research which uses genetics, gene expression, and protein pathway analysis to identify molecules that contribute to disease. These molecules are studied in cell biological assays and in animal models to understand their function and how they act in disease progression. The findings are ultimately being used to define novel targets for possible therapeutic interventions.

About Jeffrey Borenstein
Jeffrey Borenstein, M.D., the President & Chief Executive Officer of the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation is a board-certified psychiatrist with more than two decades experience in healthcare and non-profit leadership. He spent 16 years as CEO and Medical Director of Holliswood Hospital. He has hosted "Healthy Minds," the PBS Emmy Award-nominated series that he developed to educate the public, reduce stigma and offer hope to those suffering with mental illness and their families. Dr. Borenstein serves as Editor-in-Chief of Psychiatric News, the newspaper of the American Psychiatric Association and is Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons

About the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation
The Brain & Behavior Research Foundation (formerly known as NARSAD or the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression) raises funds to invest in cutting-edge research projects to understand, treat, and ultimately prevent and cure mental illness. Since 1987, the Foundation has awarded more than $328 million in its NARSAD Research Grants to more than 3,800 scientists around the world. Research projects are selected by the Foundation's Scientific Council comprised of 150 leading experts across disciplines in brain and behavior research. Funded through private contributions, the Foundation invests 100% of donor contributions for research directly into its NARSAD Grants. For more information, visit bbrfoundation.org.

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SOURCE Brain & Behavior Research Foundation

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