Neurobiology of Disease

A large part of neuroscience research is based on the premise that scientists may unravel clues to understanding diseases of the nervous system, with hopes that such endeavors may one day lead to treatment and cures. Application of sophisticated techniques from molecular biology and genetics is enabling exciting advances along these paths. Faculty are focusing in a number of strong research areas. Work by several faculty is aimed at understanding the cellular and genomic processes associated with cell death and neuroprotection in conditions such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, eye disease, ischemia, and also in the normal aging process. Another active group is involved in the promising area of cell and gene therapy, including embryonic stem cell research, which was pioneered here at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Other important represented areas include epilepsy and disorders of myelination, such as multiple sclerosis, as well as research on pain mechanisms and cardiac arrhythmia. Research on disorders of emotional and mental health are also well represented on campus, with scientists examining the neural basis of depression, anxiety and sleep disorders, schizophrenia, and addictions. Problems are investigated with a wide range of approaches, ranging from cellular and molecular methodologies to whole brain neuroimaging applications such as functional MRI.

The shaking pup is a canine mutation which is inherited in the male spaniels as an X-linked recessive trait and causes a severe deficiency in central myelination. (Figure Legend, image courtesy of Ian Duncan; Jonathan Song)

Faculty:

Rao M. Adibhatla Integration of Cytokine Biology to Lipid Metabolism After Stroke	Craig S. Atwood Endocrinology of Alzheimer's Disease and Aging
Vaishali P. Bakshi Neural Substrates and Stress Regulation of Psychiatric Disorders	Michele A. Basso Visual Target Selection for Eye Movements
Ruth M. Benca Acute Effects of Light on Sleep and Temperature	Nansi J. Colley Molecular Genetics of Protein Trafficking in the Drosophila Visual System and Mechanisms of Neurodegeration
Ian D. Duncan CNS Myelination and Glial Cell Transplantation	Zsuzsanna Fabry Immune Reactivity in the CNS
Lewis B. Haberly Analysis of the Operation of Neuronal Circuitry in Cerebral Cortex	Jeffrey A. Johnson Signal Transduction, Neurotoxicity, and Transcriptional Control of Neuroprotective Genes
Sterling C. Johnson Studies of Brain Function in Patients with Cognitive Disorders	Joseph W. Kemnitz Energy Metabolism and Aging in Nonhuman Primates
John S. Kuo Molecular Biology of Normal and Tumor-Derived Neural Stem Cells	Leonard A. Levin Mechanisms of Axotomy-Induced Apoptosis
Peter Lipton Neurochemistry of Synaptic Transmission in Brain Slices	James S. Malter Post-Transcriptional Gene Regulation of Amyloid Precursor Protein mRNA
Albee Messing Developmental Neurogenetics and Neuropathology of the Mouse	M. Elizabeth Meyerand Imaging Brain Function and Structure Using MRI
Gordon S. Mitchell Plasticity in Respiratory Motor Control; Applications to Spinal Cord Injury, Sleep Apnea and ALS	Luigi Puglielli Lipid Signaling in the Aging Brain and Molecular Pathogenesis of Alzheimer's Disease
Gail A. Robertson Molecular Mechanisms of Ion Channel Function and Disease	Arnold E. Ruoho G-Protein Receptors, G-Proteins, Neurotransmitter Transporters and Sigma Receptors
Paul A. Rutecki Synaptic Physiology of Epileptiform Activity	Dandan Sun Molecular Mechanisms of Ischemic Cell Death in the CNS
Thomas Sutula Hippocampal Plasticity in Development, Memory and Epilepsy	Clive N. Svendsen Biology of Neural Stem Cells: Fate Choices In Vitro and Repair Following Transplantation
Daniel J. Uhlrich Neural Modulation of Visual Signals in the Thalamus; Photosensitive Epilepsy	Raghu Vemuganti Molecular Mechanisms of Inflammation, Neuronal Death, and Neurogenesis After Stroke
Jyoti J. Watters Signal Transduction and Gene Expression in Microglia	Justin Williams Neural Interface Technology Research and Optimization
Jerry C.P. Yin Molecular Genetics of Learning and Memory Formation

---

More research strengths:

Behavior, Cognition and Emotion

Development, Plasticity and Repair

Membrane Excitability and Synaptic Transmission

Molecular Neuroscience

Neural Circuits

Neurobiology of Disease

Perception and Movement