Recent studies show that changes in Glutamate/GABA synapses and related pathways may determine whether the synaptic plasticity that occurs as a response to stress is adaptive or maladaptive. Findings have shed new light on the mechanisms that determine the effects of stress on cognitive and affective function. Researchers have brought a wide range of techniques to bear on the study of this problem, including cutting-edge live imaging techniques, electrophysiology, glutamate release from isolated live synaptic terminals, development of transgenic and animal models and new behavioral methods. This book provides an overview of these recent findings and of the techniques used as well as a discussion of how the molecular, cellular, and functional effects of stress may trigger or precipitate neuropsychiatric disorders such as depression, schizophrenia, anxiety and PTSD.

The Brain on Stress: The Good and the Bad.- Regulation of Excitatory Synapses by Stress Hormones.- Synaptic Stress, Changes in Glutamate Transmission and Circuitry, and Psychopatology.- Dual Regulation of Glutamatergic Transmission and Cognition by Stress in Prefrontal Cortex.- Role of Endocannabinoids in Regulating Glucocorticoid Effects on Memory for Emotionally Arousing Experiences.- Endocannabinoid Signaling& Synaptic Plasticity During Stress.- Stress Induced Metaplasticity at GABA Synapses.- Stress Modulation of Synaptic Plasticity in the Hippocampus.- Neural-Cognitive Effects of Stress in the Hippocampus.- Evolutionary, Historical and Mechanistic Perspectives on How Stress Affects Memory and Hippocampal Synaptic Plasticity.- Acute Stress Disrupts Short- and Long-term Patterns of Synaptic Plasticity in Dorsal Hippocampus and Subiculum: Implications for Hippocampal Output and Behaviour.- Synaptic Mechanisms and Cognitive Computations Underlying Stress Effects on Cognitive Function.- Altered GABA Function in Major Depression.- Pathology in Astroglia, Glutamate and GABA in Major Depressive Disorder: Evidence from Studies of Human Postmortem Tissue.- Evidence of Glutamatergic Dysfunction in the Pathophysiology of Schizophrenia.- Metabolic Stress and Neuropsychiatric Disorders.- Using our Understanding of Stress Related Effects on Glutamate Neurotransmission to Guide the Development of Novel Treatment Strategies