The amygdala as part of the limbic system plays an important role in the processing, evaluation and retrieval of emotional and threatening environmental events.  Anxiety disorders (e.g. panic attacks, PTSD, phobias etc.) have been attributed to dysfunctions of the amygdala and related brain network structures (prefrontal cortex, hippocampus, bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, paraventricular thalamus). Our experimental studies, focusing on the neural mechanisms of fear memory and extinction, will be performed using a wide spectrum of behavioral, electrophysiological, pharmacological, and optogenetical  methods and techniques.