Neuroscience & Mechanisms at 39th ECNP Congress
23 sessions on neuroscience & mechanisms · October 10–13, 2026, Munich, Germany. Compare neuroscience & mechanisms at other meetings →
Saturday, October 10
Keynote
KL01 – Welcome, ECNP Awards Ceremony and Keynote Lecture 'Neural mechanisms of social homeostasis'
Opening keynote by Salk Institute neuroscientist Kay Tye on how neural circuits maintain social homeostasis and encode emotional valence.
Symposium
S02 – Rhythms and blues – unravelling circadian-stress interactions in mental health
Henk Oster · Gabriel Tofani · Robert Thompson · Nicholas Meyer
How circadian clocks, stress systems, and the gut microbiome interact to shape mental health and sleep.
Sunday, October 11
Plenary
PL01 – Protein monoaminylation in the brain: novel mechanisms of neural development, plasticity, and disease
Plenary on non-canonical roles of serotonin and other monoamines as direct protein modifications influencing gene expression and plasticity.
Symposium
S06 – Retinal imaging in mental disorders: a novel lens on central nervous system dysfunction
Steven Silverstein · Philipp Homan · Kathrin Nickel
Retinal neural and microvascular changes as accessible windows on CNS dysfunction in psychosis and autism.
Autism & Neurodevelopmental Disorders · Schizophrenia & Psychosis
Symposium
S07 – Engineering mental health: targeted therapies to restore brain and brain-barrier function
Marianne Mueller · Stefan Liebner · Matthew Campbell · Karen Aboody
Blood-brain barrier biology as a therapeutic target, plus stem-cell-derived vesicles and focused ultrasound approaches.
Symposium
S09 – Beyond borders: exploring the biological correlates of borderline personality disorder and implications for treatment
Jose Luis Carrasco · Elisabetta Maffioletti · Mariana Mendoza Alvarez · Christian Schmahl
Psychobiological models, peripheral molecular markers, REM sleep, and neuroimaging-treatment interactions in borderline personality disorder.
Lecture
E03 – Advances in Tourette syndrome research
Tammy Hedderly · Juan Carlos Baldermann
Update on childhood diagnosis and the neuropathophysiology and treatment of Tourette syndrome.
Symposium
MS01 – Mini Symposium – Amyloid- and tau-PET biomarkers in late life depression: an update
Willemijn Jansen · Mathieu Vandenbulcke
PET biomarkers of amyloid, tau, and synaptic density in geriatric depression, including the Leuven L3D study.
Lecture
TP02 – Highlights in psychiatric genetics
Curated review of the year's top papers in psychiatric genetics.
Monday, October 12
Plenary
PL03 – Brain Prize Lecture – Malignant networks in the brain
Brain Prize lecture on how cancers integrate into and exploit neural networks.
Symposium
S10 – Innovative approaches to understanding and treating anxiety disorders: from neurobiology to cutting-edge therapies
Andre Pittig · Iiris Hovatta · David S. Baldwin · Peter Zwanzger
Fear extinction mechanisms, genetics, next-generation anxiolytics, and digital/VR therapies for anxiety disorders.
Symposium
S11 – The impact of early-life stress on brain development and psychopathology
Juan Pablo Lopez · Thorhildur Halldorsdottir · Donghao Lu
Animal and cohort evidence on how early adversity and prenatal factors shape brain development and later psychopathology.
Symposium
S13 – The science of emotion regulation: integrating neuroscience, microbiome, and mindfulness
Symposium
S14 – Dysregulation of perineuronal nets, astrocytes and extrasynaptic transmission in neurodegeneration and mental disorders
Juan Nacher · Eva Sykova · Jessica Kwok · Dominik Bach
Extracellular matrix and perineuronal net biology as levers for reactivating plasticity in brain disease.
Lecture
E04 – Chronic pain in mental health disorders – what do we know and where are we going?
Composite pain biomarkers and the neurobiology linking chronic pain with psychiatric comorbidity.
Lecture
E05 – Computational psychiatry: promises and pitfalls
Critical appraisal of computational modelling in psychiatry and its path to mechanism-based treatments.
Course
CS03 – ECNP Neuroscience Research course session – from preclinical validity to real-world impact
Anton Y. Bespalov · Simone Macri · Janko Samardzic · Patricia Kabitzke
Course on internal and external validity of preclinical data and communicating neuropsychopharmacology to the public.
Symposium
MS05 – The Earth-Brain-Health Commission: aims, recommendations and impact
Gunter Schumann · Cornelius Gross · Xanthe Hunt
Presents the commission's recommendations on environment-brain-health interactions and global implementation.
Tuesday, October 13
Plenary
PL05 – Advancing mental health in a changing world: social context and biology
Plenary integrating social determinants and biological research in global mental health, from an East African vantage point.
Symposium
S17 – Nature's shield: towards the neurobiology of resilience to psychiatric conditions
Eric Barnett · Joëlle Rüegg · Linda A. Antonucci · Daphne Holt
Genetic, environmental, and clinical approaches to identifying resilience factors against psychiatric illness.
Symposium
S18 – Closing the translational gap in addiction research: refining animal models for clinical impact
Serge Ahmed · Kasia Radwanska · Steven Laviolette · Karen Ersche
How refined animal models of alcohol, nicotine, and cannabis use can better inform addiction treatment.
Symposium
S19 – Bridging preclinical and clinical findings in psychedelic research – translational advances in psychedelic research
Tomas Palenicek · Luisa Pinto · Sophie Holmes · Annette Johansen
Psilocybin and ketamine effects on neurogenesis, synaptic plasticity, and the role of setting, from bench to PET imaging.
Symposium
S21 – Neurobiology and clinical translation of treatment resistance in major psychiatric disorders
Michael Ziller · Esmée Verwijk · Alessandra Minelli · Koen Demyttenaere
iPSC models, pharmacogenomics, ECT cognitive effects, and lived-experience perspectives on treatment resistance.
Neuromodulation (ECT, TMS) · Pharmacogenomics & Precision Psychiatry · Treatment-Resistant Depression
Other topics at this meeting
Drug Pipeline & Clinical Trials 8Digital Psychiatry & AI 7Pharmacogenomics & Precision Psychiatry 7Inflammation & Immunopsychiatry 6Schizophrenia & Psychosis 6Child & Adolescent 5Depression 5Autism & Neurodevelopmental Disorders 4Neuromodulation (ECT, TMS) 4OCD & Related Disorders 4ADHD 3Practice, Policy & Workforce 3