Matt Schaff Receives Goldwater Scholarship!
As reported in the Pitt Chronicle, April 2, 2012, Matthew A. B. Schaff, a junior majoring in neuroscience and economics, is one of three University of Pittsburgh Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences' students to be named a 2012 Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship winner for his exceptional independent research in the natural sciences. The students were nominated for the scholarships through the auspices of Pitt’s University Honors College.
Patricia White writes, "Schaff, a Pitt Honors Scholar from Strafford, Pa., is an undergraduate researcher in Pitt’s Neuropsychopharmacology of Nicotine Addiction Laboratory. He studies the reinforcement-enhancing effects of nicotine on rats through operant conditioning techniques under the direction of Alan Sved, a professor and chair in Pitt’s Department of Neuroscience, and Eric Donny, a professor in Pitt’s Department of Psychology.
Schaff also spent two summers conducting research at the University of Pennsylvania’s Neuropsychiatry Laboratory.
An intern/contractor at The Foundation for Biomedical Research in Washington, D.C., Schaff inaugurated the “Research Outreach Initiative,” which encourages scientists to perform K-12 outreach. He is a service volunteer in the Pitt Department of Biological Sciences and Clinical and Translational Science Institute’s Mobile Science Lab Program. Schaff’s honors include the Center for Neuroscience Summer Undergraduate Fellowship and the University Honors College Fall Research Fellowship. He serves as president of the Pitt Neuroscience Club.
Schaff plans to earn a PhD in neuroscience and to conduct research on the causes of drug abuse, directing the focus of his future research toward understanding the way the brain processes and responds to rewarding stimuli, particularly commonly abused stimulants such as nicotine and cocaine. He hopes to teach at the university level".
Pitt News Release: January 18, 2012
Teenagers' Brains Make Them More Susceptible to Addiction, Depression Than Adults
As published by Drs. Bita Moghaddam and David Sturman in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science research
"compared the brain activity of adolescents and adults in rats involved in a task in which they anticipated a reward". The study found "that not only is reward expectancy processed differently in an adolescent brain, but also it can affect brain regions directly responsible for decision-making and action selection".
As reported in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette today Dr. Edward Stricker describes family influences on his life, his passion for education, his academic and research years and his plans to address the University community of the state of the Honors College.
Dr. Anthony A. Grace Named Fellow by the American Association for the Advancement of Science
Anthony Grace, Distinguished Professor of Neuroscience, was recently honored as a Fellow by the American Association for the Advancement of Science for his contributions to cellular and systems studies of the brain’s dopamine system as it relates to understanding the mechanisms of schizophrenia.
It was on October 20, 1986 that the Department of Neuroscience was formed. On this day we recognize staff , Barbara Cohen and Frank Valentich, who join faculty German Barrionuevo, Anthony Grace, Edward Stricker (original Chairman), and David Wood as original members of the department.
Pictured: Edward Stricker, David Wood, German Barrionuevo and Anthony Grace
Building a Better Antipsychotic Drug by Treating Schizophrenia's Cause
As reported by a University press release on August 23, 2011, Dr. Anthony A. Grace, Distinguished Professor of Neuroscience and professor of psychology in Pitt's School of Arts and Sciences and professor of psychiatry in the Pitt School of Medicine, is the senior author of a paper in the Journal of Neuroscience. The paper reports
"progress in understanding how drugs act on dopamine-producing neurons; could enable them to create more targeted treatments". Co-authors are postdoctoral associate Kathyrn Gill and former postdoctoral associates Pierangelo Cifelli and Ornella Valenti.
This study is also featured in the Pitt Chronicle, September 6, 2011.
Grant Awarded to Dr. Pauline Belujon
On July 15, 2011, Dr. Pauline Belujon, a Research Assistant Professor with Dr. Anthony Grace, was awarded funding from NARSAD, The Brain amd Behavior Research Fund. The 2010 NARSAD Young Investigator Award is for a project entitled Deep Brain Stimulation of the mPFC and Ketamine Work in Similar Manners to Restore Limbic System Balance in an Animal Model of Stress-Induced Depression. This study focuses on the mechanisms underlying both deep brain stimulation in the medial prefrontal cortex and ketamine administration in the treatment of depression. Such studies will provide important insight into the development of novel therapeutic approaches in the treatment of affective disorders.
Pitt Distinguished University Professor of Neuroscience Edward M. Stricker Named University Honors College Dean, Effective July 1, 2011
The Department of Neuroscience is very pleased to report that Dr. Ed Stricker has been announced as the Dean of the University Honors College.
As reported by Pitt's News on May 16, 2011, Dr. Stricker " a renowned neuroscience scholar and educator who currently serves as Distinguished University Professor of Neuroscience in the University of Pittsburgh Department of Neuroscience and who, throughout his career at the University, has been known for his commitment to instilling in students his appreciation of and enthusiasm for the development of the life of the mind—has been named dean of Pitt’s University Honors College (UHC). His appointment is effective July 1, 2011".
As noted in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, May 17, 2011, Dr. Stricker succeeds Dean Alec Stewart who passed away in 2010. Chancellor Mark Nordenberg praised the career of Dr. Stricker calling him "a renowned neuroscience scholar and educator who is dedicated to fostering in students appreciation of and enthusiasm for intellectual pursuits".
Additional articles may be found in the University Times and the Pitt Chronicle.
Probing the Brain Power of Pitt Neuroscience - May 23, 2011
As reported in the Pitt Chronicle on May 23, 2011, "
University of Pittsburgh neuroscience faculty work to unlock the brain’s remaining secrets, attracting considerable research support to the University, primarily from the National Institutes of Health (NIH)".
Pictured: Dr. Susan Amara and Dr. Alan Sved
Carnegie Science Center: Pittsburgh Regional Science and Engineering Fair
April 1 -2, 2011
The Department of Neuroscience was the proud sponsor of James Constantin of Central Catholic High School at the 72nd Pittsburgh Regional Science and Engineering Fair (PRSEF) at Heinz Field.
More than a thousand students in grades 6 - 12 from 107 schools competed in the festivities this year. James, a junior in Mark Krotec's class, presented a project entitled "Protein affect on muscle stem cells".
Pitt Neuroscience Student Awarded Prestigious Goldwater Scholarship - April 4, 2011
Wen Xu, a University of Pittsburgh Honors College junior majoring in neuroscience in the School of Arts and Sciences, has been named a 2011 Barry M. Goldwater Scholarship winner for her exceptional independent research. Xu, from McCandless Township, Allegheny County, Pa., plans to pursue an MD/PhD degree. Her career goals include conducting translational research related to neural plasticity and regeneration after injury. She is the 35th Pitt student to have won a Goldwater Scholarship since 1995.
See the full article from the Pitt Chronicle.
Grant Awarded to Dr. Jon Johnson - March 1, 2011
Congratulations to Dr. Johnson who has been awarded an NIH R21 grant entitled, Role NR1/2C and NR1/2D NMDA Receptors in Cortex Function and Memantine Action. The research proposed focuses on how inhibition in the brain is controlled, and how memantine, a drug used to treat Alzheimer's disease, affects inhibition. Understanding how memantine helps patients with Alzheimer's disease may lead to the design of improved treatments.
Alzheimer's Association Grant Awarded to Dr. Nadezhda Povysheva - January 1, 2011
Dr. Povysheva, a Research Assistant Professor in Dr. Jon Johnson's lab, received a 2010 New Investigator Research Grant from the Alzheimer's Association. Dr. Povysheva's research project, Somatostatin-Positive Interneurons as a Novel Target of Anti-Alzheimer Drugs, proposes to test whether memantine and other drugs may promote cellular activity in Alzheimer's by blocking the functions of inhibitory nerve cells called somatostatin-positive inhibitory interneurons.
Dr. Moghaddam and co-author David Sturman, predoctoral student, are published in the Journal of Neuroscience - January 26, 2011
As reported by the University of Pittsburgh press release and the PittChronicle, Pitt Researchers Find Adolescent Brains Over-Process Rewards, Suggesting Root of Risky Behavior, Psychological Disorders.
Dr. Moghaddam and David Sturman, a predoctoral student (MD/Phd) in the lab, "observed the disparate reactions to reward in individual neurons in the orbitofrontal cortex, a brain region that weighs payoff and punishment to plan and make decisions". This exciting research " could reveal the biological root of the teenage propensity to consider rewards over consequences and explain why adolescents are more vulnerable to drug addiction, behavioral disorders, and other psychological ills".
Grant Awarded to Gil D. Hoftman - January 1, 2011
We congratulate Gil D. Hoftman, an MD/PhD student with Dr. David Lewis, who has been awarded an NIMH National Research Service Award entitled "Developmental Trajectories of Prefrontal Cortical GABA Neurons and Schizophrenia".
Gil's four year project will examine the developmental trajectories of key components of prefrontal cortical circuitry that are sensitive to cannabis use and are altered in schizophrenia.
Neuroscience in the News
Sports-related brain injuries in youngsters soar, CDC says
Reuters - October 6
Traumatic brain injuries in youth athletes climbed by 60 percent in the last decade.
Video: Monkeys Demonstrate Brain-Controlled Arm With a Sense of Touch
Popular Science - October 6
A study has trained monkeys to operate a virtual reality hand that provides them with tactile feedback via microwave implants.
Brain memory finding may help schizophrenia research Reuters - October 4
A variation in a part of the brain may explain why some people have a better memory of reality than others and could advance understanding of brain disorders like schizophrenia, scientists said Tuesday.
Tracing the Circuits of Self-Loathing in the Depressed Brain Time - October 4
A new study finds that that the key wiring that connects brain regions in this circuit is weakened in people suffering from depression.
Scientists Create Autism-Like Traits in Mice
U.S. News & World Report - March 21
Gene manipulation produces common behaviors and provides model for testing drugs, expert says
