The global objective of this training program is both to study the mechanism of ECT and develop a research career at the interface of basic/clinical science. To accomplish these goals, the applicant proposes the following training: 1) Clinical training in outpatient psychiatry, 2) Study of animal models and specifically the learned helplessness (LH) model of depression, 3) Graduate level didactic training in neurobiology, 4) Investigation of the effects of electroconvulsive shock on the noradrenergic system and B-receptors in LH animals, 5) Participation in ongoing clinical studies of ECT in humans, 6) Development of a clinical research program based on basic research.
