The Science of Fear

Fear is a primitive emotion, common to all animals and essential to their survival. But fear is also an enigmatic emotion. How is it spread? How do defence mechanisms function in a situation of risk and what is their influence on animal behaviour? And how does context determine an organism’s reaction to danger? At the Behavioural Neuroscience Lab, the team of researcher Marta Moita studies the root of fear, focusing on the swift physiological and behavioural changes that occur when animals are exposed to danger, and on how these contribute to their survival.

Marta Moita is Principal Researcher in Behavioural Neuroscience at the Champalimaud Foundation, Lisbon. She studies the mechanisms of fear conditioning.

Photography: Renato Cruz Santos