Center welcomes fourth graduate student from the Division of Biology and Biomedical Sciences at Washington University
Welcome, Chayla!
The National Institute on Aging Awards Dr. Bahaa Elgendy $426,000 to Support Alzheimer’s Research
Elgendy will investigate the estrogen-related receptor alpha (ERRα) and the critical role it plays in regulating genes involved in oxidative stress and inflammation.
Faculty in Press: Dr. Susruta Majumdar; “G protein‐biased kratom‐alkaloids and synthetic carfentanil‐amide opioids as potential treatments for alcohol use disorder”
Dr. Susruta Majumdar, recently co-authored a paper demonstrating that certain alkaloids from the plant kratom could potentially be developed into a treatment for alcohol use disorder.
Center Faculty Highlighted in NIDA’s Review of 2019 Achievements in Opioid Research
Center faculty, Dr. Susruta Majumdar, Dr. Ream Al-Hasani, and Dr. Jordan McCall, were highlighted in NIDA’s “Review of 2019 Achievements in Opioid Research.”
The Center for Clinical Pharmacology was the recipient of the BMO Harris Bank Spirit of St. Louis Award during the 7th annual Arcus Awards, held February 27th
The Center for Clinical Pharmacology was one of four organizations selected as BMO Harris Bank Spirit of St. Louis Award finalists for 2020.
Dr. Tom Burris Receives $740,000 Grant from Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals
Tom Burris, Ph.D., FAAAS, FAHA, recently received grant funds totaling more than $740,000 from Mallinckrodt Pharmaceuticals.
INRC Honors Ream Al-Hasani, PhD, with 2020 Young Investigator Award (Links to an external site)
The International Narcotics Research Conference (INRC), the annual meeting for researchers and clinicians working in the opioid field, will honor Dr. Al-Hasani with the 2020 Young Investigator Award at their upcoming symposium.
2019 Summer Research Scholars Program Highlights
P1 student Yearam “Esther” Tak presented her research on cerebral palsy at the American Neurological Association Annual Meeting and the 48th Child Neurology Society Annual Meeting in October.
Nobel Prize Winner, Dr. Brian Kobilka, M.D., Presents at Seminar Series
Brian Kobilka, M.D., professor of molecular and cellular physiology at Stanford University and winner of the 2012 Nobel Prize in chemistry, recently visited St. Louis College of Pharmacy to present his current research. He was invited by the Center for Clinical Pharmacology as part of its 2019-2020 speaker series.
Center faculty in the press: Dr. Kyle Parker, Ph.D. (Links to an external site)
Nociceptin and its receptor are widely distributed throughout the brain in regions associated with reward behavior, yet how and when they act is unknown. Here, we dissected the role of a nociceptin peptide circuit in reward seeking. We generated a prepronociceptin (Pnoc)-Cre mouse line that revealed a unique subpopulation of paranigral ventral tegmental area (pnVTA) neurons enriched in prepronociceptin. Fiber photometry recordings during progressive ratio operant behavior revealed pnVTAPnoc neurons become most active when mice stop seeking natural rewards. Selective pnVTAPnoc neuron ablation, inhibition, and conditional VTA nociceptin receptor (NOPR) deletion increased operant responding, revealing that the pnVTAPnoc nucleus and VTA NOPR signaling are necessary for regulating reward motivation. Additionally, optogenetic and chemogenetic activation of this pnVTAPnoc nucleus caused avoidance and decreased motivation for rewards. These findings provide insight into neuromodulatory circuits that regulate motivated behaviors through identification of a previously unknown neuropeptide-containing pnVTA nucleus that limits motivation for rewards.
Two junior faculty received Rita Allen Foundation Awards in Pain (Links to an external site)
“This funding makes what is easily the riskiest project in the lab a much more secure venture. One of the biggest challenges we face using rodents as models of complicated human conditions is that we cannot ask the animals how they feel. A simple question, but a very difficult one to answer. With this award, we will be working to overcome this barrier by extracting detailed information from videos of the animal’s behavior to determine whether they are in pain, or distress. We will use new types of data analysis from mathematics to essentially ask the mice that simple question, “How do you feel?” By the end of this award, we aim to have made strides in identifying stress and pain in animals without having to disturb their daily routine. This approach will hopefully enable new strategies for understanding neural circuit function and therapeutic development.” – Dr. Jordan McCall, PhD, MPH