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Berzelius symposium 90
The Neurobiology of Parenting
19–21 August 2015 in Stockholm · Sweden
The symposium is arranged by the Swedish Society of Medicine in cooperation with
Acta Paediatrica · Sällskapet Barnavård · John Lind Stiftelsen · Karolinska Institutet
Welcome to the symposium on
The Neurobiology of Parenting
The aim of this proposed Berzeliussymposium is to present novel
research findings with respect to the underlying physiological and
psychological processes of becoming a parent as well as to the
mechanisms of how parenting emerges.
As many as 2.8 million mothers and 2.3 million fathers live in
Sweden today, which amounts to approximately 51% of the entire
population.
Thus, parents constitute a significant portion of the population.
Parents are willing to expend enormous resources, at personal
costs to raise their children and ‘deserve’ to be noticed and understood in their own rights.
We also know that the quality of parenting has large effects on the
development of children. For instance, sensitive and responsive
parenting affects childrens’ attachment, emotional and social regulation, their language, cognition, and executive function development and growth. It is evident that these effects are prominent
from very early on: Breastfeeding, close physical contact between
the mother (and father) and baby and/or talking and singing to
the infant stimulates the cognitive and emotional development as
early as in the postpartum period.
Lack of adequate stimulation and long term separation from caregivers can have deterimental effects on children, as was seen, for
example, in the hospitalized Romanian orphans. Harsh, neglectful or abusive parenting results in higher risk for physical health
problems and substance abuse, adult obesity and chronic illness
or depression.
Organizing Committee: Professor Hugo Lagercrantz, Wibke Jonas, RM PhD,
Associate Prof. Ulrika Ådén MD PhD (Department of Women’s and Children’s Health, KI)
and Associate Prof. Andreas Olsson (Department of Clinical Neuroscience, KI)
Parenting clearly matters. Parental caretaking is a fundamental
and genetically transmitted biological instinct, and we are just
starting to understand the underlying psycho- and neurobiological mechanisms that determine individual differences in parental
behaviour in humans.
Just to illustrate some of the mechanisms involved: high levels of
oxytocin, released during labour and birth stimulate the mother’s
readiness to take care of her newborn. High levels of cortisol
stimulate the mother’s alertness and capability to recognize their
newborns simply by smell. The bare view of a newborn baby is
capable of stimulating an adults dopaminergic reward system.
The latter is true even for persons who are not parents!
Increased activity has been demonstrated in the orbitofrontal
cortex of adults when viewing a newborn infant regardless of
parenthood.
This symposium will exhibit pre-clinical and clinical research findings and is relevant for a broad audience, including researchers
and students, laymen and all personnel who are working with
families and newborns.
You are cordially invited to participate!
Welcome to Stockholm in August 2015!
Hugo Lagercrantz, Wibke Jonas, Ulrika Ådén, Andreas Olsson
Organizing committee
Faculty · Invited speakers
Terje Falck-Ytter
Department of Psychology,
Uppsala University, Sweden
Patrick McGowan
University of Toronto, Centre for Environmental
Epigenetics and Development, Canada
Ruth Feldman
Department of Psychology
Brain Research Center
Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan, Israel
Eva Nissen
Department of Women’s and Children’s Health,
Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
William Fifer
Columbia University Medical Center
New York State Psychiatric Institute
Renée Flacking
School of Education, Health and Social Studies
Dalarna University
Alison Fleming
University of Toronto, Canada
Lianne Woodward
Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Dept of Pediatric Newborn Medicine
Boston, USA
Wibke Jonas
Department of Psychology
University of Toronto at Mississauga (UTM),
Ontario, Canada
Morten Kringelbach
Department of Psychiatry
University of Oxford, UK
Hugo Lagercrantz
Division of Neonatology
Karolinska Institutet
Stockholm, Sweden
Steven Lye
Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology
University of Toronto, Canada
Mikael Norman
Karolinska Institutet
Stockholm, Sweden
Andreas Olsson
Department of Clinical Neuroscience
Karolinska Institute, Sweden
Nelly Padilla
Department. Department of Women’s and
Children’s Health
Karolinska Institute, Sweden
Anna Sarkadi
Department of Women’s and Children’s Health,
Uppsala University, Sweden
Emma Sörbring
University of Gothenburg, Sweden
Nim Tottenham
University of Minnesota
Developmental Psychology & Neuroscience
Los Angeles, CA, USA
Larry Young
Department of Psychiatry
Emory University School of Medicine
Atlanta, Georgia, USA
Ulrika Ådén
Department of Women´s and Children´s Health,
Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
Preliminary Programme
Wednesday, 19 August 2015
12.00–13.00 Registration
13.00 Welcome Addresses
SESSION I
Psychobiology, genetics of parental care and the brain
Chair: TBA
13.10 Alison Fleming: The mother’s brain.
13.45
Renée Flacking: Breastfeeding and infant-parent interaction.
14.00
Wibke Jonas: Breastfeeding in a sample of vulnerable mothers
– some outcome and predictor variables.
14.15
Emma Sörbring: Cultural differences.
14.30
Coffee
15.00
Nim Tottenham: Human Amygdala-Prefrontal Cortex
Development and the Role of Caregiving.
16.45 Discussion
19.00 Reception at the Stockholm City Hall hosted by a member
of the Presidency of the City Council and co-hosted by Stockholm’s County Council.
Thursday, 20 August 2015
SESSION II
Newborn and parental behaviour in the immediate
postpartum period.
Chair: TBA
09.00
Patrick McGowan: Gene-environment interaction.
09.35 Eva Nissen: Birth.
09.50
Hugo Lagercrantz: Awakening of the newborn infant.
10.05
Discussion
10.15
Coffee
10.35
Mikael Norman: Mode of delivery – epigenetic effects.
10.50
Steven Lye: Preterm delivery.
11.10
Ulrika Ådén and Nelly Padilla: The preterm brain.
11.40
Care of the preterm family. Tbd
11.55 Discussion
12.15
Lunch
13.15
William Fifer: Fetal and infant learning.
13.50
Terje Falck-Ytter: Mirror neurons in parent infant interaction.
14.05
Lianne Woodward: Interaction with preterm infants at the NICU.
14.50
Discussion
15.00
Coffee
15.30
Free communications. Poster viewing.
18.00
Symposium dinner at Junibacken on Djurgården, Stockholm
Including the ”Story Train” which will take us on a journey with the fabulous
stories of Astrid Lindgren.
Friday, 21 August 2015
THE JOHN LIND FOUNDATION LECTURES:
09.00
Ruth Feldman: The father’s brain
09.35
Anna Sarkadi: The Swedish father.
09.50
Discussion
10.00
Coffee
10.30
Larry Young: The biology of parenting.
11.05
Morten Kringelbach: The parental instinct.
11.30
Conclusions
11.45
General discussion
12.20
Concluding remarks
You are most welcome to submit a poster abstract to the meeting!
Abstract:
Posters
max length 44 lines with Times New Roman 12 p.
Please send to annie.melin@sls.se
not later than 10h June 2015
Poster boards at the symposium:
There will be boards available with approx size of 90 cm wide
x 120 cm. If you already have a poster in a larger size, two
boards can be used.
A schedule for the poster presentations will be available and handed
out at the time of registration or shortly thereafter.
General information
When & Where?
19–21 August 2015 at the Swedish Society of Medicine (SSM),
Klara Östra Kyrkogata 10 in Stockholm, Sweden.
Registration 10th June 2015, is deadline for registration.
Please register on-line at the website
http://www.sls.se/parenting
More information: annie.melin@sls.se
The Society’s building in Stockholm
Registration fees Participation fee for members in the SSM
2000 SEK · non-members 2500 SEK · Students 1000 SEK
Late registration (after 10th June, 2015) 3000 SEK
Symposium dinner 500 SEK
Payment Please pay the registration fee through PayPal on the
symposium website http://www.sls.se/parenting. We can also send
you an invoice for the registration fee.
Cancellations Cancellation of your participation has to be made in
writing and sent to annie.melin@sls.se. For cancellations received
before 10th June, 2015, a cancellation fee of SEK 500 will be charged.
After this date, a cancellation fee corresponding to the registration
fee will be charged.
The conference Hall
Lunches and coffee are included in the participation cost and
will be served in the on-site restaurant at the SSM.
Social programme
Wedensday, 19 August 2015 at 7 p.m: Reception at the
Stockholm City Hall. The city of Stockholm and the Stockholm
County Council invite you to a buffet dinner. The Reception is
free of-charge. Pre-reservation is necessary!
Thursday, 20 August 2015 at 6.p.m: Symposium dinner at Junibacken. Price: 500 SEK. Pre-reservation is necessary.
The on-site Restaurant
Accommodation Please book your room through this on-line
service: http://www.mcistockholm.se/hotels
Your hotel costs are to be settled directly with the hotel.
All major credit cards are accepted.
The City Hall of Stockholm is one of the
most beautiful and well known buildings
in the world and the most exclusive
ballroom in Stockholm, frequently used
for the yearly Nobel Banquet.
To and from the airport
Train: Arlanda Express is the fastest way into town from StockholmArlanda Airport. It only takes 20 minutes from the airport to the
Central Station in Stockholm.
Airport buses & taxi takes approx. 45 minutes.
Registration and more information at the website http://www.sls.se/parenting
REGISTRATION ON-LINE
10th June 2015, is deadline for registration.
www.sls.se/parenting
MORE INFORMATION
Annie Melin, the Swedish Society of Medicne
annie.melin@sls.se, +46 (0) 8 440 88 78
www.sls.se/parenting