Larry Cahill, PhD

Larry Cahill, Ph.D. is Assistant Professor of Neurobiology and Behavior and a fellow of the Center for the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory at UC Irvine. Dr. Cahill's research focuses on neural mechanisms of memory formation for emotionally arousing events, addressing these issues with both human and infra-human subject work. His research suggests that interactions between peripheral stress hormones and the amygdala in humans are critical for enhanced conscious ("declarative") memory associated with emotional arousal.

Collectively, Dr. Cahill's research challenges several prevailing views of the role of the amygdala in memory, and provides strong confirmation of the view, derived from prior animal research, that endogenous catecholamines and the amygdala influence memory storage for emotionally significant events.

Dr. Cahill's current research directions include examining conditions under which post-learning stimulation of the sympathetic nervous system enhances memory consolidation in humans, and identifying pathways in the human brain through which amygdala activity influences memory formation. His most recent research highlights influences of both cerebral hemisphere and subject sex on neural mechanisms of emotionally influenced memory. Finally, he is pursuing the clinical implications of this work for the prevention and treatment of disorders of memory for emotional events, such as Posttraumatic Stress Disorder.