Kuei Tseng, MD, PhD
University of Illinois, Chicago
My interest in the neurobiology of brain function began in medical school. As a result, I decided to pursue a PhD in neuroscience after obtaining my MD degree. I was a research fellow at the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital in Paris. After completing my PhD in Buenos Aires, I continued my neuroscience training with Dr. Patricio O’Donnell at Albany Medical College. I am a Professor in the Department of Anatomy & Cell Biology at the University of Illinois – Chicago, and my research interests include mechanisms of synaptic and circuit-level plasticity underlying the development of critical periods and brain maturation.
Impact of Early Life Adversity on prefrontal circuit maturation
Exposure to early life adversity (ELA) is known to negatively impact the development of neural circuits controlling threat detection, leading to cognitive and emotional dysregulation later in life. Yet, the underlying mechanisms contributing to such behavioral deficits remain elusive due to our limited understanding of key neural maturation events that are sensitive to ELA. The prefrontal cortex (PFC) is likely to play a pivotal role in driving the circuit-level effects of ELA, given its protracted developmental trajectory and high reactivity to stress. Here I will show unpublished data and discuss key concepts on how sensitive neurodevelopmental processes become vulnerable to the impact of ELA, with emphasis on PFC neural circuits that undergo functional remodeling during the adolescent period. Of particular interest is the gain of PFC GABA transmission and the re-calibration of local excitatory-inhibitory balance, a hallmark of PFC maturation that is intimately linked to the development of cognitive functioning.