13th INTERNATIONAL MEETING
STEROIDS AND NERVOUS SYSTEM
Torino (Italy) February 21-25, 2026
Torino (Italy) February 21-25, 2026
Saturday February 21 - Torino
Chair: Roberto C. Melcangi (Italy) & Silvia Giatti (Italy)
9:15 Roberto C. Melcangi (Italy) Introduction to the Satellite Symposium
9:30 Alexandros Tsompanidis (United Kingdom) Sex differences in early human brain structures and neurodevelopment
10:00 Ramune Griksiene (Lithuania) Sex differences in visuospatial cognition and emotion: behavioral, EEG, and eye-tracking insights
10:30 Giulia Lombardo (United Kingdom) Sex-specific endocrine and immune biomarkers in major depressive disorder
11:00 - 11:30 coffee break
11:30 Illana Gozes (Israel) ADNP/davunetide play a critical role in sex-dependent hippocampal neurogenesis and memory boost
12:00 Silvia Giatti (Italy) The sex of the brain: neuroactive steroid Implications for health and disease
12:30 Marco Bortolato (USA) Sex, stress, and steroids: male-specific pathways in mood and coping regulation
13:00 - 14:30 lunch
14:30 Michael Schumacher (France) Sex differences in myelination: activational and organizational effects of gonadal steroids
15:00 Ashley Monks (Canada) Adult gonadal steroid hormone manipulations effects on sexual reward and neural responses to genital stimulation depend on sex of mice
15:30 Jonathan Hirst (Australia) Zuranolone treatment following preterm labour has sexually dimorphic benefits that improve outcomes
16:00 Closure of the Satellite Symposium
Saturday February 21 - Torino
16:30 Opening ceremony
SYMPOSIUM - OVARIAN HORMONES ARE CRITICAL REGULATORS OF BRAIN PLASTICITY AND DISEASE RISK:
EVIDENCE ACROSS SPECIES AND BRAIN SCALES
Chair: Marija Kundakovic (USA) & Liisa Galea (Canada)
17:00 Maria Paternina (Spain) Brain neuroplasticity during gestation and postpartum period
17:30 Emily G. Jacobs (USA) Dynamic endocrine modulation of the nervous system
18:00 Deepak Srivastava (United Kingdom) Multi-omic analysis of sex specific effects of estradiol on neurodevelopment in human cerebral organoids
18:30 Marija Kundakovic (USA) Single-cell map of the female brain across reproductive transitions
Chair: George Barreto (Ireland)
Manuel Tena-Sempere (Spain)
Dynamic interplay between sex steroids and metabolism: From brain actions to obesity-induced hypogonadism
20:00 Welcome Cocktail
Sunday February 22
Chair: Nicole Gervais (The Netherlands) & Charlotte Cornil (Belgium)
8:30 Nicole Gervais (The Netherlands) Menopause and midlife sleep disturbance in rodent AD models
9:00 Agnès Lacreuse (USA) Nonhuman primate models of menopause
9:30 Claudia Barth (Norway) Menopause-related factors & brain health
10:00 Mallar Chakravarty (Canada) Effects of long-term ovariectomy on brain trajectories in mice
10:30 - 11:00 coffee break
Chair: Jill Daniel (USA) & Karyn Frick (USA)
11:00 Laura Schrader (USA) Impact of cardiometabolic health status on the ability of estradiol to affect the hippocampal memory system
11:30 Ricardo Mostany (USA) Impact of cardiometabolic health status on the ability of estradiol to influence cortical plasticity and neurovascular coupling
12:00 Andrea Zsombok (USA) Impact of cardiometabolic health status on the ability of estradiol to modulate hypothalamic circuits regulating metabolism
12:30-14:30 lunch and poster discussion 1
MINISYMPOSIUM - THE BRAIN ON ESTROGENS: HOW STEROIDS SHAPE BEHAVIOR, BRAIN ACTIVITY, AND NEUROPLASTICITY
Chair: Birgit Derntl (Germany) & Liisa Galea (Canada)
14:30 Ellen de Bruijn (The Netherlands) Outcomes of the international expert meeting on the effects of hormonal fluctuations on neurocognitive functioning across the female lifespan
15:00 Erica Comasco (Swedeen) Estrogen, nicotine and reward
15:30 Ann-Christin Kimmig (Germany) Endogenous vs. Exogenous Estrogenic Potency in Females: Associations with Sexual Appetence and Brain Function – An (f)MRI Study
16:00-16:30 coffee break
16:30 Silvia Pagliardini (Canada) Influence of progestins on the CO2 central chemoreflex
17:00 Richard Kinkead (Canada) Life long cardiorespiratory consequences of early life stress on estrogen signalling in female rats
17:30 Luciane Gargaglioni (Brazil) Hormonal Rhythms and CO₂ Response: Unveiling Estrous Cycle Modulation of Behavior and Respiration in Rodents
18:00 Carolina Lombardi (Italy) Sleep apnea and autonomic nervous system; from cardiovascular risk to excessive daytime sleepiness
Monday February 23
SYMPOSIUM - NEUROSTEROIDS AND NMDAR FUNCTION: MOLECULAR MECHANISM AND RESCUE PHARMACOLOGY
Chair: Hongjie Yuan (USA) & George Barreto (Ireland)
8:30 Steven Mennerick (USA) Synthetic Steroid-like Compounds with Unusual Actions at GABA-A and NMDA Receptors
9:00 Ladislav Vyklicky (Czech Republic) Neurosteroid Modulation of NMDA Receptors in Physiology and GRIN-Related Pathology
9:30 Shai Berlin (Israel) Rescuing NMDA Receptor Function from Devastating De Novo Mutations
10:00 Sharon Swanger (USA) Novel Synthetic Neurosteroid Analog: from Mechanism of Action to Rescue Pharmacology
10:30-11:00 coffee break
MINISYMPOSIUM - MATERNAL NEUROENDOCRINE ADAPTATIONS IN AN ENVIRONMENT FILLED WITH DIVERSE PRESSURES
Chairs: Marilena Marraudino (Italy) & Dario Aspesi (USA)
11:00 Sarah Winokur (USA) Investigating The Impact Of Sickness On The Neurobiology Of Maternal Caregiving Behavior
11:30 Dario Aspesi (USA) Resource Scarcity Induces Unpredictable Maternal Behavior Linked To Changes In Gene Expression Within The Basolateral Amygdala Of Rats
12:00 Marilena Marraudino (Italy) EDCs And Altered Maternal Nutrition Influence The Stress Axis Of The Mother And Offspring
12:30-14:00 lunch and poster vision
MINISYMPOSIUM - SEX STEROIDS, DOPAMINE AND PARKINSON’S DISEASE
Chair: Therese Di Paolo (Canada) & Roberto C. Melcangi (Italy)
14:00 Julia M. Schulze-Hentrich (Germany) Sex-specific transcriptional and epigenetic differences in Parkinson’s disease
14:30 Therese Di Paolo (Canada) Sex differences in animal models of Parkinson’s disease effect of hormonal treatments and COVID-19 disease
15:00 Jill Becker (USA) Effects of estradiol receptor subtypes on stimulated dopamine release and motivated behaviors
15:30-16:00 coffee break
SYMPOSIUM - NEUROACTIVE STEROIDS AND WOMEN’S MENTAL HEALTH: TRANSLATIONAL ADVANCES
IN PTSD, PMDD, AND POSTPARTUM DEPRESSION
Chair: Graziano Pinna (USA) & Gianluca Aimaretti (Italy)
16:00 Graziano Pinna (USA) The Neurosteroid-Endocannabinoid axis in PTSD: From Animal Models to Biomarkers and Therapeutics
16:30 Ann Rasmusson (USA) Moving Toward Rational Precision Neurosteroid-Based Treatments for PTSD and PTSD-Comorbid Conditions
17:00 Liisa Hantsoo (USA) Neuroactive Steroid Dysfunction in Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder (PMDD)
17:30 Jennifer Payne (USA) The Neuroactive Steroid Pathway and Postpartum Depression: Moving Towards Etiology
Tuesday February 24
SYMPOSIUM - SEX HORMONES AND ADDICTION
Chair: Bernd Lenz (Germany) & Silvia Giatti (Italy)
8:30 Katarzyna Radwańska (Poland) Brain estrogen signaling and alcohol addiction in rodents
9:00 John Mantsch (USA) Complementary prefrontal cortical estrogen-glucocorticoid mechanisms regulate cocaine seeking
9:30 Bernd Lenz (Germany) Longitudinal variations in sex hormones and their associations with alcohol use and related phenotypes
10:00 Rajita Sinha (USA) Sex steroids and neuroactive steroids in alcohol and substance use disorders
10:30-11:00 coffee break
11:00-12:45 YOUNG INVESTIGATOR SYMPOSIUM
Chair: Silvia Diviccaro (Italy) & Marilena Marraudino (Italy)
Kandasamy Ganga (India) Face and construct validity of a PTSD model in male rats and testing the predictive validity using a neurosteroid
Luca Concas (Italy) Allopregnanolone enables the psychotic-like (endo)phenotypes induced by sleep deprivation through activation of prefrontal excitatory GABA-A receptors
Irena Jovanovic Macura (Serbia) Differential effects of alfaxalone on oxidative stress enzyme activities in APPNL-G-F knock-in mice
Manuela Faddetta (Ireland) Altered aromatase activity induces mitochondrial dysfunction and metabolic reprogramming in astrocytes
Emma Clephas ( the Netherlands ) Stress hormone administration impairs memory inference in mic
José González-Martínez (United Kingdom) The interaction between genetics and androgens in autism during human neural development
Melissa Emily Wright (United Kingdom) Neuroendocrine influences on dynamic cerebrovascular function and implications for functional MRI
Anna F. Denninger (Germany) Estradiol & stress. Impacts on brain, body and mind before and after menopause
12:45-14:45 Lunch & Poster Discussion 2
SYMPOSIUM - BRAIN CLOCKS AND STEROIDS
Chair: Mariana Astiz (Spain) & Stefano Gotti (Italy)
14:45 Violetta Pilorz (Germany) Hormones that shape the brain's rhythm: estrogen & progesterone, the female clock tuners
15:15 Hugh Piggins (United Kingdom) Sex and ageing differentially alter daily and infradian rhythms in mice
15.45 Valerie Simonneaux (France) Light and estradiol orchestrate the female reproductive cycle
16:15 Mariana Astiz (Spain) The central circadian clock and the developmental timeline of glucocorticoids sensitivity
Enjoy Torino
17:00-18:00 Turin City center BUS TOUR
Social Dinner
Wednesday February 25
HOT TOPIC IN NEUROENDOCRINOLOGY
Chair: Roberto C. Melcangi (Italy)
9:00 Rae Silver (USA) Numerous Portal Pathways in the Brain: New Mechanisms for Impact of Steroids
SYMPOSIUM - GLUCOCORTICOID REGULATION OF MEMORIES ON THE PATH TO STRESS RESILIENCE AND VULNERABILITY
Chair: Joanna Spencer-Segal (USA) & Onno Meijer (The Netherlands)
9:30 Jason Radley (USA) Neural versus hormonal bases of aversive memory consolidation
10:00 Patrizia Campolongo (Italy) Glucocorticoid receptor targeting in PTSD and adolescent stress models
10:30-11:00 Coffee Break
11:00 Joanna Spencer-Segal (USA) Glucocorticoid modulation of PTSD risk in ICU survivors
11:30 Harm Krugers (The Netherlands) Synaptic and cellular signature of stress-effects on memory
Stephen Matthews (Canada)
Glucocorticoids and the developing brain: an intergenerational perspective
Chair: Onno Meijer (The Netherlands)
13:00-14:00 Lunch
MINISYMPOSIUM -THE MULTIFACETED LINK OF STRESS AND PSYCHIATRIC DISORDERS:
UNRAVELING MECHANISMS TO ADVANCE THERAPEUTIC APPROACHES
Chair: Marco A. Riva (Italy) & Patrizia Campolongo (Italy)
14:00 Marco A. Riva (Italy) Adolescence at the Crossroads: Early Life Stress Exposure, Precipitating Factors, and Therapeutic Strategies for Psychopathologies
14:30 Carmen Sandi (Switzerland) Mitochondria, stress, and glucocorticoids: Unraveling vulnerability and therapeutic potential
15:00 Juan Nácher Roselló (Spain) Long term effects of early life stress and its contribution to psychiatric disorders
MINISYMPOSIUM - CORTICOSTEROIDS AND DISEASE
Chair: Onno Meijer (The Netherland) & Annamaria Cattaneo (Italy)
15:30 Serena Dudek (USA) Mineralocorticoid receptors in neurodevelopment – a link to autism
16:00 Eva Viho (Germany) Single cell analysis of the human postmortem brain in stress related disorders
16:30 Closing of the Meeting