 |
Neuroscience Graduate Program at UCSF
Synaptic Properties of Neurons in Brain Areas Relevant to Drug Addiction, such as the Ventral Tegmental Area (VTA) and the Nucleus Accumbens (NAcc)
Chronic exposure to drugs of abuse causes several cellular and behavioral adaptations such as tolerance, dependence, and sensitization. The main goal of my laboratory is to understand the synaptic properties of neurons in brain areas relevant to drug addiction, such as the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and the nucleus accumbens (NAcc). We have recently demonstrated that the VTA principal neurons are able to express various forms of synaptic plasticity, such as long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD). One of the aims of my research is to establish a correlation between excitatory amino acid receptors, and the long-term changes that are produced by chronic administration of drugs of abuse such as ethanol, cocaine and morphine. This will allow us to examine changes produced at the synaptic level by the chronic treatment with these drugs, and possibly open new avenues for potential therapeutic strategies.
Bjorn Schilstrom, Ph.D., Vineeta Singh, M.D., Stephanie Borgland, Ph.D.:
Role of cocaine in the modulation of addictive behaviors and synaptic plasticity in the ventral tegmental area (VTA). Our goal is to understand how changes in synaptic transmission at VTA excitatory synapses are correlated with addictive behaviors such as behavioral sensitization and relapse to drug-seeking. These studies are performed by using a combination of in vivo and in vitro approaches.
Friedrick W. Hopf, Ph.D., and Maria Grazia Cascini, Ph.D.:
Modulation of dopamine D1 and D2 receptors of synaptic activity and dopamine-dependent behaviors in the nucleus accumbens. Dopamine in the nucleus accumbens modulates both motivational and addictive behaviors. Dopamine D1 and D2 receptors are generally considered to exert opposite effects at the cellular level, but behavioral data indicate that co-activation of both receptor subtypes can produce cooperative effects. Our currents studies show that both D1 and D2 receptors are required for dopamine-induced enhancement of spike firing in nucleus accumbens neurons. We are now seeking to characterize the intracellular pathways that mediate the increased neuronal activity. Further, our data suggest that these pathways may increase spike firing by inhibition of a slow A-type potassium current.
Tara Crowder, Ph.D.:
Modulation of mesolimbic synaptic plasticity by stress. Stress increases addictive behaviors. The main goal of this project is to study how exposure to stressors modifies the excitatory synaptic responses in the mesolimbic system.
Borgland, Stephanie
Postdoctoral Fellow, Ph.D.
Cascini, Maria
Postdoctoral Fellow, Ph.D.
Crowder, Tara
Postdoctoral Fellow, Ph.D.
Gonzalez, Gilda
Staff Research Associate
Hopf, Woody
Senior Scientist, Ph.D.
Pierce-Shimomura, Jon
Postdoctoral Fellow, Ph.D.
Schilstrom, Bjorn
Postdoctoral Fellow, Ph.D.
Shabel, Steve
Neuroscience Graduate Student
Singh, Vineeta
Visiting Assistant Professor M.D.
Melis M, Camarini R, Ungless MA, Bonci A. Long-lasting potentiation of GABAergic synapses in dopamine neurons after a single in vivo ethanol exposure. J Neurosci. 2002 Mar 15;22(6):2074-82.
M. Ungless, J. Whistler, R. Malenka, A. Bonci. Single cocaine exposure in vivo induces long-term potentiation in dopamine neurons. Nature. 2001, 411(6837):583-7.
M. Thomas, C. Beurrier, A. Bonci, R. Malenka. Long-term depression in the nucleus accumbens: a neural correlate of behavioral sensitization to cocaine. Nature Neuroscience. 2001 4(12):1217-23
M. Thomas, R.C. Malenka and A. Bonci. Modulation of Long-term Depression by Dopamine in the Mesolimbic System. J. Neuroscience. 2000, 20(15):5581-6.
A. Bonci and R.C. Malenka. Properties and Plasticity of Excitatory Synapses on Dopaminergic and GABAergic Cells in the Ventral Tegmental Area. J. Neuroscience. 1999, 19(10): 3723-3730.
A. Bonci, P. Grillner, N.B. Mercuri, A. Siniscalchi and G. Bernardi. L-type calcium channels modulate a slow excitatory synaptic transmission in rat midbrain dopaminergic neurons. J.Neuroscience. 1998, 1, 18(17): 6693-6703.Antonello Bonci, M.D.
Phone
510-985-3100
Office Location and Mailing Address
Ernest Gallo Clinic and Research Center
5858 Horton Street
Suite #200
Emeryville, CA 94608
Other Websites