RESEARCH DIVISIONS

Spinal Cord Pharmacology

Research is currently being conducted to examine the actions of amino acid neurotransmitters in the spinal cord. John C. Hackman, Ph.D., professor of neurology and Alexander Y. Valeyev, Ph.D., research assistant professor of neurology, have been researching these transmitters that include the excitatory amino acid glutamate and the inhibitory amino acid gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), which are responsible for the majority of fast neurotransmission in the central nervous system. Each transmitter acts on a variety of receptors and the action of each receptor may be altered by other transmitters/modulators. Researchers have recently been studying the interactions between other transmitters such as serotonin and norepinephrine and glutamate and GABA.

The laboratory uses a systems approach with an intact spinal cord slice preparation to study these interactions. The laboratory also studies the pharmacology and biophysical properties of GABA receptors on cultured dorsal root ganglion cells using whole cell and isolated patch clamp techniques. These cells are the cells that bring sensory information into the spinal cord and are important in the transmission of painful stimuli into the spinal cord.

With the assistance of Charles W. Luetje, Ph.D. in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Pharmacology, the laboratory has begun to characterize the subunits of the GABA receptor present in the human dorsal root ganglion using molecular biological techniques. The laboratory also has begun to culture and transfect cells with GABA subunits to study the effects of different subunit combinations on the pharmacology of the GABA receptor.

Interdepartmental collaborations include Paul Schiller, Ph.D. of the Geriatric Research Program at the Miami Veterans Affairs Medical Center and Patrick M. Wood, Ph.D. of the Miami Project to Cure Paralysis.