Development and mechanisms of stress resiliency.

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Behavioural and/or physiological responses to stressors enable an organism to deal effectively with the challenge, and regain homeostasis. While necessary, the stress response can lead to various deleterious effects in certain individuals. However, such effects are not observed in all individuals that are exposed to stress, or even extreme trauma, so, while it is important to uncover the mechanisms underlying vulnerability to the effects of stress, it is equally valid to pose the question – ‘what are the mechanisms at work in individuals that are resilient in the face of stress?’ In the face of a changing environment, a variable coping strategy will be most effective for establishing an individual as being resilient, versus being vulnerable, to stress. We will examine the underlying mechanisms of coping and resilience using animal models. We will build on our past work and investigate the influence of key factors in the early and adolescent environment (parents, social structure) with respect to building coping behaviours in adulthood. We will also examine the underlying neural mechanisms. This work will provide information that could lead to interventions that move individuals toward the resilient end of the susceptibility-resilient continuum.