Seminars & Events
Monday, September 19, 2011: Dr. R. Christopher Pierce (University of Pennsylvania) will speak on "Epigenetic Inheritance of a Cocaine Resistance Phenotype" at 4:45 pm in Goodpaster 195.
Friday, November 4, 2011: Dr. Paul Shepard (University of Maryland Baltimore) will speak at 3:00 pm in Schaefer Hall 106.
Friday, November 11, 2011: Dr. Mark Bouton (University of Vermont) will speak at 3:00 pm in Goodpaster Hall 195.
Alumni Highlight
Dr. Erin Johnson '02 recently received her Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of Rochester School of Medicine, and was inducted as an alumni member of Nu Rho Psi.
SMP Spotlight
Ron Saul, "Chronic activation of the substantia nigra nociceptin/orphanin receptor induces motor deficits similar to Parkinson's disease," 2008. Saul, the 2008 winner of the Neuroscience Award, infused a drug into the substantia nigra of rats and measured the resulting motor behaviors, mood disturbances, and cognitive abilities.
Asmann, S. (2006). A Behavioral Investigation of an Isolation-Rearing Model of Schizophrenia in Rats.
Mentor: Dr. Anne Marie Brady
Abstract
Isolation-rearing of rats leads to behavioral and neurochemical changes including deficits in pre-pulse inhibition, locomotor hyperactivity, and impairments in spatial learning. These behaviors are analogous to vulnerability to stress and cognitive deficits in human schizophrenia. This experiment addresses the relationships between these three behaviors through the use of acoustic startle, locomotor assessment in an activity chamber and a radial arm maze task. The hypothesis was that animals raised in isolation would have greater PPI deficits, increased locomotor hyperactivity, and more difficulty completing a radial arm maze task. These behaviors were hypothesized to be positively correlated with one another. The research showed a significant increase in PPI deficit and difficulty in a radial arm maze task, but did not support the locomotor activity hypothesis or correlational hypothesis.
