Banner - Curriculum in Neurobiology at UNC-Chapel Hill

Research Areas: Channels, Receptors, and Signal Transduction


Name Keywords Research Interests
Bhat, Manzoor Axon, Node of Ranvier, glia, drosophila, mice, neurexin Genetic Dissection of Axon-Glial Interactions in Drosophila and Mice
Deshmukh, Mohanish apoptosis, cell death, neurodegeneration, development, survival, nerve growth factor, transgenic mice Molecular mechanism of apoptosis in neurons.
Gilmore , John dopamine, schizophrenia, imaging, FMRI, human, virus, development, Developmental regulation of dopamine receptor function in humans. Role of maternal viral infections in brain development.
Goy, Michael second messengers; cyclic GMP; synaptic modulation; neuromuscular physiology Regulation of cyclic nucleotide function in neuromuscular, CNS, and gastrointestinal systems
Harden, T. Kendall G proteins, phospholipase C, RGS proteins, P2Y receptors, ecto-nucleotidase, protein structure/function, molecular pharmacology Regulation of phospholipase C and inositol lipid signaling; Structure/function of RGS proteins; Biology of nucleotides and nucleotide sugars as extracellular signaling molecules
Hodge, Clyde drug addiction, pharmacology, behavior, neural circuits, genetics, receptors Behavioral neurobiology and pharmacogenomics of drug abuse: Neural circuits and genes that mediate drug, self-administration and discrimination.
Hong, Jau-Shyong opioid peptides; neurotransmitters; gene expression; bovine adrenal chromaffin cells; hippocampus; seizures Regulation of opioids and tachykinins in the nervous system at the cellular and molecular level
Lauder, Jean serotonin, neurotransmitters, neuronal and glial cultures, whole embryo culture, rats, mice, in situ hybridization, receptors, immunocytochemistry, antiidiotypic antisera, morphometry Serotonin and neuronal/glial differentiation in the rat CNS.
Lund, P Kay peptides, growth factors Regulation of the biosynthesis and expression of neuropeptides; function of growth factors in the CNS
Maixner, William pain, electrophysiology, pharmacology Pharmacological and physiological mechanisms underlying the control of pain; role of hemodynamic factors in nociception
Maness, Patricia cell adhesion, development, oncogenes Oncogenes and their expression in the developing nervous system
Manis, Paul synaptic transmission, receptors, ion channels, potassium channels, spike-timing dependent plasticity, patch clamp, brain slice, single cell neural modeling, calcium imaging, quantitative real-time PCR, single cell PCR Cellular mechanisms of auditory information processing and plasticity. Studies examine ion channels and synaptic function and plasticity in the brainstem and cortex.
McCarthy, Kenneth glial cells, calcium signaling Regulation of intracellular calcium and glial cell function by neurotransmitter action; regulation of glial cell phenotype
Meeker, Rick neuroendocrine; supraoptic nucleus; pituitary; HIV; vasopressin; in situ hybridization; cholinergic receptors; AIDS dementia Immunocytochemistry and electrophysiology of vasopressin neuroendocrine cells of the hypothalamus
Morrow, A Leslie GABA-A receptor, mRNA regulation, ethanol, barbiturates, benzodiazepines, neuroactive steroids Molecular Neuropharmacology, Mechanisms of Receptor Regulation, Alcohol Research, GABA-A Receptors
Nicholas, Robert receptors, purinergic receptors, G-proteins Regulation and function of G-protein coupled receptors in the CNS
Otey, Carol cytoskeleton, growth cone motility, astrocyte activation, glial scar, presynaptic plasticity, vesicle trafficking Regulation of actin cytoskeleton organization and its role in axonal outgrowth during development and after injury; changes in astrocyte morphology and motility in response to injury of the CNS.
Pedersen, Cort Maternal behavior, sexual behavior, oxytocin, neuropeptides. Peptide influences on maternal and sexual behavior; neurobiology of parenting behavior
Perl, Edward pain, nocioception, brain slices, spinal cord, sensory processing Specificity of sensory systems; cellular and molecular correlates of nociceptive function in mammals
Philpot, Benjamin synaptic plasticity, visual system, ocular dominance, LTP, LTD, NMDA receptors, cortex We are studying how visual experience modifies the properties of synaptic plasticity (LTP and LTD) so that the visual world can be properly analyzed. We use brain slice preparations from transgenic mice. These studies will characterize how experience regulates the elementary properties of plasticity and excitatory synaptic transmission.
Picker, Mitchell addiction, behavior, opiates Behavioral responses to chronic narcotic analgesic treatment
Polleux, Franck development, ephrins, cortex, signaling pathways Identification of the cues and signaling pathways underlying the development of connections in the mammalian cerebral cortex
Robinson, Donita alcoholism, electrophysiology, electrochemistry, behavior, neuropharmacology, neural circuits, dopamine, alcohol self-administration, drug addiction Cellular mechanisms underlying alcohol use in an animal model of alcohol self-administration: electrophysiological recordings at multielectrode arrays; electrochemical measurements of dopamine at microelectrodes; neuroadaptations induced by chronic alcohol exposure; pharmacotherapy for alcoholism.
Roth, Bryan Phramacology, G-proteins, serotonin, opoid receptors Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine; 5-HT) and opioid receptors are involved in the actions of drugs used in treating a large number of illnesses including depression, schizophrenia, anxiety, migraine headaches, pain and chemotherapy-induced nausea. Understanding how drugs bind to and regulate serotonin and opioid receptors will yield insights into designing novel medications for treating a large number of CNS diseases.
Rosenberg, Robert electrophysiology; ion channels; patch clamp; Xenopus oocytes; ionotropic receptors Molecular mechanisms of gating and ion permeation of nicotinic acetylcholine receptors
Rustioni, Aldo structure and cell biology of glutamate receptors and of actin-associated proteins Control of sensory input by presynapic glutamate receptors expressed by primary afferents to the spinal cord. The role of palladin, a newly discovered protein, in synaptic transmission and axonal sprouting in response to injury.
Sealock, Robert cytoskeleton; duchenne muscular dystrophy; dystrophin; membrane-cytoskeleton interaction; actin-binding proteins; protein chemistry; electron microscopy; freeze-etch; postsynaptic structure & cell biology Molecular mechanisms underlying acetylcholine receptor localization at neuromuscular junctions; the cytoskeleton of the muscle cell plasma membrane
Sockman, Keith auditory forebrain, behavior, birdsong, catecholamine, evolution, field biology, monoamine, neuroecology, neuroethology, reproduction Using songbirds as a study system, I take field and laboratory approaches to investigate the neural integration of ecological and social cues regulating life-history trade-offs and reproductive decisions such as mate-choice, courtship, reproductive timing, and reproductive effort.
Stuart, Ann visual system, synaptic transmission, histamine, biophysics Processing of visual information in a simple (invertebrate) nervous system; mechanisms of synaptic transmission from photoreceptors
Thiele, Todd addiction, alcohol, behavior, electrophysiology My primary research interests are directed at the neurobiology of alcoholism. To study the central mechanisms involved with neurobiological responses to ethanol, I use both genetic and pharmacological manipulations.
Valtschanoff, Juli neurotransmitter, spinal cord, somatosensory, nitric oxide, vanilloid, electron microscopy Dr. Valtschanoff's research interests are in neurotransmitters in the brain and spinal cord. Past studies have involved amino acid neurotransmitters and nitric oxide in the rat somatosensory system, combining immunocytochemical techniques at LM and EM level with tract tracing methods and models of altered neuronal activity. Recent reasearch has focused on glutamate receptors and their anchoring proteins, and the role of vanilloid receptors in the mediation of nociception in the dorsal horn of mammals.
Van Dyke, Terry genetics, cancer, glial, glioblastoma, transcription Regulatory mechanisms of cell-specific gene transcription and cell growth control
Weinberg, Richard dendritic spines, calcium, neuroanatomy, electron microscopy, spinal cord, cortex, synaptic transmission, neurotransmitters, glutamate, GABA My primary research interest is postsynaptic mechanisms of glutamatergic transmission. I want to understand glutamatergic signaling, especially its short- and longterm modulation. My group is now studying the structural organization of the postsynaptic density and the dendritic spine.
Weiss, Ellen G-Proteins, retina, signaling The research in my laboratory concerns the regulation of G protein signaling pathways. G-proteins are activated by a family of cell surface receptors known as G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs). These receptors, all having seven transmembrane domains, are regulated by diverse environmental signals, including hormones, neurotransmitters, odorants, light and ions such as Ca2+. The level of G protein activity in cells is ultimately determined by the level of receptor stimulation and by several mechanisms that contribute to inhibition of G protein signaling.
Wightman, R Mark neurotransmitters; dopamine, norepinephrine, 5-hydroxytryptamine; in vivo measurements Real-time electrochemical measurements of neurotransmitter secretion in the rat brain
Zylka, Mark GPCRs, Neural circuitry, electrophysiology, behavior, molecular neurobiology Molecules and Mechanisms for Pain
Last update: 17-Oct-2008 10:36 | Contact Us | ©2008 Curriculum in Neurobiology, UNC Chapel Hill