This dissertation explores three critical players in the cardiac Ca2+ signaling pathway. First, I examined the role of mitochondria in Ca2+ signaling by generating a Ca2+ probe, mitycamE31Q, with 1.5μM affinity for ...

Parasympathetic regulation of the gastric antrum is mediated through the vago-vagal circuitry in which glutamatergic afferents relay peripheral information to the CNS and cholinergic efferents transmit the compensatory ...

The vagus nerve is a vital component of the brain-gut axis by which the activity of the gastrointestinal tract, particularly the stomach is modulated by the CNS. Through two distinct sphincters, the lower esophageal ...

The goals of this study were to define the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) subtypes expressed in the rat habenula. This was done using three main techniques: single and sequential immunoprecipitation using ...

This thesis is divided into three distinct sections. The work in Chapter I was designed to describe two newly identified exons found in the GRM1 gene that encode a novel splice variant of metabotropic glutamate (mGlu) 1 ...

Neuroinflammation precedes neuronal loss in striatal neurodegenerative diseases and can be exacerbated by the release of proinflammatory molecules by microglia. These molecules can affect trafficking of glutamate receptors. ...

The oncogene nuclear receptor coactivator amplified in breast cancer 1 (AIB1) is a transcriptional coactivator that is overexpressed in various types of human cancers. However, the molecular mechanisms controlling AIB1 ...

In the first part of this thesis I explored a role for the capsaicin receptor TRPV1 in the regulation of feeding and body mass. On a diet containing 4.5% fat, wild-type and TRPV1-null mice gained equivalent body mass. On ...

Antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) are first-line seizure treatments. Despite use in pregnancy and early life, their impact on brain maturation is unclear. This can only be assessed in preclinical models (e.g., rats), as seizures ...

Glutamate is the predominant excitatory neurotransmitter in the mammalian brain, activating ionotropic and metabotropic glutamate (mGlu1) receptors. mGlu1 receptors are highly expressed in cerebellar granule cells, but ...