Graduate Program in Neurobiology & Behavior

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Research News

Two of our recent graduates, Sung Han and Julia Lemos, have had work from their dissertations published in Nature. Both papers represent collaborations between labs in our Neurobiology & Behavior program (Catterall and de la Iglesia, and Phillips and Chavkin.)

Dr. Han’s paper “Autistic-like behaviour in Scn1a+/- mice and rescue by enhanced GABA-mediated neurotransmission” identifies the neurobiological mechanism of autistic-like behavior in an animal model of Dravet syndrome and has important implications for the treatment of autism spectrum disorders. Dr. Lemos’ paper “Severe stress switches CRF action in the nucleus accumbens from appetitive to aversive” demonstrates a neural mechanism for how stress can lead to depression.

N&B faculty member Adrian KC Lee (Speech & Hearing Sciences, Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences) just received a prestigious Air Force Office of Scientific Research Young Investigator Research Program Award

This Award is for new researchers who show exceptional ability and promise for conducting basic research. His AFOSR project is to develop "An integrated neuroscience and engineering approach to classifying human brain-states."

The work of N&B student Stephanie Furrer on the mechanism of spinocerebellar ataxia type 7 is featured on the cover of this month's special issue of the Journal of Neuroscience.

Journal of Neuroscience, Nov. 2011 . See our Blog.

N&B Student William Marrs in lab of  Nephi Stella identifies a novel mechanism controlling levels of an endogenous cannabinoid in the brain.

Nature Neuroscience, 2010 and press release. Also, see our Blog.

Research of N&B Program Labs Featured in the Wall Street Journal

The labs of David Raible and Ed Rubel are using zebrafish as a model system to identify drugs and genes that may influence damage and regeneration of sensory hair cells of the human inner ear. N&B graduate student Julie Harris has contributed importantly to this work.

N&B Faculty Fetz and Perlmutter create a brain-computer interface to restore movement in a paralyzed monkey.

Nature, 2008.

Past Retreats

2011

September 22nd, Waterfront Activities Center

Program

2010

September 17, 2010 (Friday) , Museum of History & Industry.

Program

2009

September 18, 2009 (Friday) September 9-10, Pacific Science Center.

Program

2008

September 9-10, 2008 (Tuesday and Wednesday), Seabeck Conference Center.

Program

2007

September 24-25, 2007 (Monday and Tuesday), Seabeck Conference Center.

Program

2005

September 14-15, 2005 (Wednesday and Thursday),Seabeck Conference Center.

Program

September 14, Wednesday

11:00am-12:00pm     Arrive and register
12:00pm-1:00pm     Lunch
1:00pm-3:00pm     Talks
3:00pm-6:00pm     Free time for activities
6:00pm-7:00pm     Dinner
7:00pm-8:00pm     Free time
8:00pm-9:00pm     Poster session and social activities

September 15, Thursday

8:00am-9:00am     Breakfast
9:00am-10:30am     Free time
10:30am-12:00pm     Talks
12:00pm-1:00pm     Lunch

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2004

Friday, April 16, 2004 (1:00pm - 6:00pm) at the South Campus Center, Room 316

Program

• 1:00pm
  Refreshments
• 1:30-2:30pm
  Gary Westbrook, M.D., Oregon Health & Science University, Vollum Institute: New Neurons and New Synapses in the Hippocampus.
• 2:30pm
  Break
• 2:50pm
  Staci Sorensen: Regulation of dendritic struction by afferent input in nucleus laminarus.
• 3:10pm
  Sarah Allred: Perceptual similarity and neural selectivity in extrastriate visual cortex.
• 3:30pm
  Ala Moshiri: Sonic hedgehog promotes proliferation of retinal progenitor cells.
• 3:50pm
  Anne Marie Wissman: BDNF and seasonal plasticity in the avian song system.
• 4:15-4:30pm
  Poster Set-Up
• 4:30-6:00pm
  Poster/Pizza Session

POSTERS

1. Elizabeth Wilkinson: A role for memory in visually guided locomotion. (EJ Wilkinson and HA Sherk)
2. Ruohola-Baker Lab: . Dystroglycan-Dystrophin complex in signal transduction. (A Yatsenko, G Shcherbata, L Patterson, B Gray, V Shcherbatyy, V Stodd, D Baker and H Ruohola-Baker)
3. Zhengui Xia Lab: Signal transduction mechanisms regulating CNS neurogenesis: neural stem cell proliferation, differentiation, and survival. (Presenter: Dr. L Liu)
4. Julie Harris: Expression of Pro-Caspas 3 in the postnatal mouse cochlear nucleus during and after a critical period of afferent dependent survival. (JA Harris and EW Rubel)
5. Christopher Davenport: Multiphoton imaging of calcium fluxes in the dendrites of rat hypoglossal motoneurons. (CM Davenport, DJ Margolis, RK Powers, PB Detwiler and MD Binder)
6. Jonathan Ting: Synaptotagmin IV rescues synaptic transmission in cultured hippocampal neurons of synaptotagmin I knockout mice. (JT Ting and JM Sullivan)
7. Melanie Roberts: Patterning the retina: Thyroid hormone receptor beta2 and RXRgamma regulate cone opsin expression. (MR Roberts and T Reh)
8. Abigail Person: GABAergic Pallidal inputs drive spiking in thalamic neurons in the song system. (AL Person and DJ Perkel)
9. Felice Dunn: Adaptation: is it a change in signal gain, an increase in quantal fluctuations, or just another Nicholas Cage movie? (FA Dunn, AP Sampath, TA Doan and F Rieke)
10. Craig Bennett: Identification of the gene for a juvenile-onset form of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Senataxin). (YZ Chen and PF Chance)

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2003

Friday, April 18, 2003 (1:00pm - 6:00pm) at the South Campus Center, Room 316

Program

• 1:00pm
  Refreshments
• 1:30-2:30pm
  Ben A. Barres, M.D., Ph.D., School of Medicine, Neurobiology, Stanford University: How Do Astrocytes Enhance Synaptogenesis?
• 2:30pm
  Break
• 2:50pm
  Scott Goeke: New Kinks for Lola: Alternative Splicing of Lola Generates a Family of 19 Transcription Factors that Control Different Aspects of Axon Growth and Guidance in Drosophila.
• 3:10pm
  Joseph Ho: Pescadillo, the Little Fish in a Big Pond: A Novel Nucleolar Protein Associated with Development, Proliferation and Malignancy.
• 3:30pm
  Kimberly Craven:Structure-directed Analysis of Cyclic Nucleotide-gated Channel Function.
• 3:50pm
  Alexander Stein: Fishing with TRPV1 in the Brain of a Human Fetus.
• 4:15-4:30pm
  Poster set-Up
• 4:30-6:00pm
  Poster/Pizza Session

Posters

1. Zhengui Xia Lab: Signal Transduction Mechanisms Regulating CNS Neurogenesis: Neural Stem Cell Proliferation, Differentiation, and Survival. (Presenter: Dr. L Liu)
2. Zhengui Xia Lab: Extracellular Signal Regulated Kinase 1/2 Antagonizes Glycogen Synthase Kinase 3b -Induced Apoptosis in Cortical Neurons. (Presenter: Dr. S-L Hsuan)
3. Siobhan Robinson: Electrophysiological Characterization of Medium Spiny Neurons in Awake, Behaving Dopamine-deficient Mice in Response to L-dopa. (S Robinson, DM Smith, SJY Mizumori and RD Palmiter)
4. Jo H. Choi: Active Caspase-8 is Present in Neuronal Differentiation. (JH Choi, W Guo, RS Morrison and GA Garden)
5. Christina Tun: Title: HIV-associated Neurodegeneration Requires p53-mediated Signaling Pathways in Multiple Cell Types. (GA Garden, W Guo, C Tun, S Jayadev, S Balcaitis, T Moeller, and R Morrison)
6. Joy Sebe: Differential Effects of Ethanol on GABA and Glycine Receptor Mediated Synaptic Currents in Brainstem Motoneurons. (JY Sebe, ED Eggers, AJ Berger)
7. Robert Silverstein: PMCA2 Expression is Regulated by Two Promoters in Mouse Cochlea. (RS Silverstein, and BL Tempel)
8. Katherine Graubard: Immunocytochemical Evidence for Nitric Oxide- and Carbon Monoxide Producing Neurons. (AE Christie, JM Edwards, E Cherny, TA Clason, and K Graubard)
9. Christopher K. Thompson: Seasonal Change in Neuronal Attributes of a Basal Ganglia Homologue in the Avian Song Control System. (CK Thompson, and EA Brenowtiz)
10. Trez Buckland: Addiction: Hijacking the Brain (S Cunningham, A Horita, W Beery, D Schatz, S Adler, H Buckland, J Williamson)
11. Abigail L. Person: Stereotyped Rebound Excitation in DLM Following Offset of Inhibitory Trains. (AL Person, and DJ Perkel)
12. Mark Ruffo: Onset of Activity in Thalamus and Cortex During a Reaching Task. (M Ruffo, and ME Anderson)
13. David J. Margolis: Active Dendritic Conductances Shape the Visual Responses of Retinal Ganglion Cells. (DJ Margolis, and PB Detwiler)
14. Cecilia B. Moens: Patterning the Zebrafish Hindbrain. (CB Moens)
15. Mari DeMarco: A Model of an Infectious Prion Aggregate Derived from Molecular Dynamics Simulation. (M DeMarco, and V Daggett)
16. Melanie Roberts: Patterning the Retina: Thyroid Hormone and Retinoid X Receptors Regulate Cone Opsin Expression. (MR Roberts, and TA Reh)

2002

Saturday, January 12, 2002 (from 9:00am to 3:30pm), Center for Urban Horticulture

Program

• 9:00am
  Coffee & Doughnuts
• 9:30am
  Jaime Athos: NMDA Receptor and ERK/MAPK Activities are Required for Long-Term Memory Formation and Learning-Induced CRE-Mediated Transcription.
• 9:50am
  Jennie Close: BMP7's Effects on Muller Glial Differentiation.
• 10:10am
  Long Ding: Dopamine modulates excitability of spiny neurons in the avian basal ganglia.
• 10:30am
  Kevin Kanning: The p75 Neurotrophin Receptor Subfamily: Is there a RIP off?
• 10:50-11:10am
  Break
• 11:10am
  Tom Knight: Activity of Frontal Eye Field Neurons During Gaze Shifts in the Head-Unrestrained Monkey.
• 11:30am
  Joshua Gittelman: KCNA Channels Curtail Subthreshold Na Channel Activity, Thus Limiting Variability of Action Potential Timing.
• 11:50am
  Jamie Theobald: Optimizing Vision in the Dark.
• 12:10pm
  Poster Set-Up
• 12:30-3:30pm
  Poster Session / Lunch

POSTERS

1. Abigail Person: Tonotopic Expression of Eph Receptors and Ephrins in the Developing Chick Nucleus Laminaris. (AL Person, DP Cerretti, M Bothwell, EB Pasquale, EW Rubel & KS Cramer)
2. Sarah Allred: Stimulus Similarity Under Perceptually Demanding Conditions. (B Jagadeesh and S Allred)
3. Ramona Hicks: Environmental Enrichment Attenuates Learning Deficits, but Does Not Alter BDNF, TrkB, or NT-3 Gene Expression in the Hippocampus Following Lateral Fluid Percussion Brain Injury. (RR Hicks, L Zhan, A Atkinson, M Stevenson, M Veneracion, and KB Seroogy)
4. Matthew Cunningham: Galanin-Like Peptide (GALP) as a Potential Regulator of Pituitary Hormone Secretion. (MJ Cunningham, SM Krasnow, A Jureus, D Li, AE Carlson, CK Thompson, DN Teklemichael, DK Clifton, and RA Steiner)
5. Jochen Ditterich: A Computational Model of the Speed and the Accuracy of Motion Discrimination. (J Ditterich, ME Mazurek, JD Roitman, J Palmer & MN Shadlen)
6. Helen "Trez" Buckland: Addiction: Hijacking the Brain - Education for Middle and High School Students, the General public and Professional Groups on the Neurobiology of Addiction. (S Cunningham, S Adler, B Beery, H Buckland, A Horita, M Kunselman, D Schatz, & J Williamson)
7. Ala Moshiri: Persistent Retinal Progenitors in PTC-/+ Mice. (A Moshiri, J Friedland-Little, B Dierks, and T Reh)
8. Melanie Roberts: Opsin Expression in Cone Photoreceptors is Regulated by Thyroid Hormone and CNTF. (M Roberts, B Dierks, D Forrest & T Reh)
9. Xavier Figueroa-Mascot: Taxol Induces Apoptosis in Cortical Neurons by a Mechanism Independent of Bcl-2 Phosphorylation. (XA Figueroa-Mascot, M Hetman, MJ Higgins, N Kokot and Z Xia.)
10. Paul Muchowski: Requirement of an Intact Microtubule Cytoskeleton for Aggregation and Inclusion Body Formation by a Mutant Huntingtin Fragment. (P Muchowski, K Nin, C D'Souza-Schorey, & S Fields)
11. Joshua Gittelman: KCNA Channels Curtail Subthreshold Na Channel Activity, Thus Limiting Variability of Action Potential Timing. (J Gittelman, H Brew & BL Tempel)
12. Yong Lu: Effect of Cochlea Removal on Kv1.1 Immunoreactivity and Electrophysiology in Chicken Nucleus Magnocellularia Neurons. (Y Lu, P Monsivais, BT Tempel, and EW Rubel)
13. Martha Bosma: Voltage-Gated Ion Currents and Rhythmic Intracellular Calcium Oscillations in Embryonic Mouse Hindbrain. (MM Bosma and JJ Wright)
14. Heidi Picken-Bahrey: Sodium Channel Upregulation Throughout Pre- and Postnatal Development in Mouse Neocortex. (HL Picken-Bahrey, WJ Moody & JS Edwards)
15. Sarina Hui-Lin Chien: Lightness Constancy in 4-Month-Old Infants. (SHL Chien & KW Bronson-Castain)
16. Thomas Knight: Single-Unit Discharge and Microstimulation of Frontal Eye Field Neurons in the Head-Unrestrained Monkey. (TA Knight & AF Fuchs)
17. Scott Goeke: Looking at lola in silico and in vivo.

2001

Saturday, January 6, 2001, Center for Urban Horticulture

Program

• 9:00am
  Coffee & Doughnuts
• 9:30am
  Christie Robertson: cGMP Enhances the Effects of Sonic Hedgehog in Neural Plate Cells.
• 9:50am
  Scott Votaw: The Role of Spinal Interneurons in Primate Wrist Movements and Grip.
• 10:10am
  Mark Ruffo: Corticothalamic Neurons in the Motor System - What Do They Do?
• 10:30am
  Matthew Cunningham: Galanin-Like Peptide (GALP): A Hypothalamic Whodunit of Periventricular Proportion.
• 10:50-11:10am
  Break
• 11:10am
  Michael Farries: A Role for the Basal Ganglia in Songbird Vocal Learning.
• 11:30am
  Robijanto Soetedjo: The Superior Colliculus Receives Feedback About the Ongoing Saccade
• 11:50am
  Kim Matulef: Disulfide Bond Formation in the Ligand-Binding Domain of Cyclic Nucleotide-Gated Channels
• 12:10pm
  Poster Set-Up
• 12:30-3:30pm
  Poster Session / Lunch

POSTERS

1. Anne Marie Wissman: Effects of Dehydroepiandrosterone on Behavior and Neuroanatomy of a Songbird. (K.K. Soma, A.M. Wissman, E.A. Brenowtiz, and J.C. Wingfield)
2. Leena Patel: The p35 Knockout Mouse: An Animal Model for Epilepsy?
3. Kerry Kim: Temporal contrast adaptation in the salamander retina. (Kerry Kim and Fred Rieke)
4. Michelle Braun: The zona limitans intrathalamica as a signaling center in diencephalic development. (Michelle Braun and Henk Roelink)
5. Staci Sorensen: Neonatal retinal deafferentiation changes the structure of callosal synapses. (S.A. Sorensen, T.A. Jones, and J.F. Olavarria)
6. James Phillips: Vestibular and oculomotor responses in infants. (Phillips, J.O., Jacobs, C.M., Weiss, A.H., and Gates, G.A.)
7. Joshua Gittelman: KCNA channels help regulate timing of action potentials in MNTB neurons. (Joshua X. Gittleman, Helen Brew, and Bruce L. Tempel)
8. Kevin Kanning: Identification of novel p75 neurotrophin receptor homologues reveals a conserved subfamily of the TNF receptor superfamily.
9. Mark Mazurek: Time integration as a mechanism for sensory-motor decisions.
10. Mike Richards: The Effects of N-terminal Truncations on VR1.
11. Scott Bury: Influence of Denervation and Behavioral Change on Plasticity of Subpopulations of Motor Cortical Dendritic Spines in Adult Rats. (S.D. Bury, D.L. Adkins and T.A. Jones)
12. Ann Voorheis: Behavioral and Structural Effects of Aspiration of Tissue Damaged by Cortical Injury. (A.C. Voorheis & T.A. Jones)
13. Scott Goeke: Taking the measure of lola in silico and in vivo.
14. Robert Fern: Ischemic injury of neonatal brain: some new approaches.
15. Karina Cramer: Expression of Ephrin-B Ligands and EphB Receptors in the Developing Avian Auditory Brainstem. (Karina Cramer, Elena B. Pasquale, Douglas P. Cerretti, Sana D. Karam, and Edwin W. Rubel)
16. John Neumaier: Overexpression of 5-HT1B receptor in dorsal raphe nucleus sensitizes rats to stress.
17. Tony Pham: The CRE/CREB transcriptional pathway is transiently expressed during the thalamic circuit development and is required for accurate refinement of retinaogeniculate axons.
18. Trez Buckland: Neuroscience Education: Expanding Our Web. (Trez Buckland, Jenny Williamson, and Susanna Cunningham)
19. David Perkel: Physiological properties of synpases in area X of the zebra finch. (Farries, M.A., L. Ding, and D.J. Perkel)
20. Jennie Close: Damage Induced Expression of Progenitor and Neural Markers in Adult Rat Retinal Muller Glia.
21. Farrel Robinson, Jr.: Moment-to-Moment and Long-term Cereballar Control of Eye Movements. (F.R. Robinson, A.F. Fuchs, and C.T. Noto)
22. Yong Lu: Elimination of deafferentiation-induced increase of intracellular calcium concentration prevents cell death in neurons of nucleus magnocellularis. (Ed Rubel and Yong Lu)
23. Sarina Chien: Simultaneous lightness contrast in young infants. (Chien, S.H.L., Allred, S., Teller, D.Y., and Palmer, J.)
24. Jane E. Cavanaugh: Differential Regulation of Mitogen Activated Protein Kinases ERK1/2 and ERK5 by Neurotrophins, Neuronal Activity and cAMP in Neurons. (Jane E. Cavanaugh, James Ham, Michal Hetman, Steve Poser, Chen Yan and Zhengui Xia).

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