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Activity-dependent fluorophore expression
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Cholinergic (red) fibers innervating the interpeduncular nucleus
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The cholinergic populations in the interpeduncular nucleus (cyan), and catecholaminergic populations (red) in the ventral tegmental area in a mouse ex
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Medial sagittal slice of a GAD-GFP transgenic mouse, with catecholaminergic (red), cholinergic (cyan), and GABAergic (green) populations labeled.
What We Do
My lab studies the neurophysiology underlying addiction to alcohol, nicotine, and opioids, and anxiety using classical and novel techniques including chemogenetics, optogenetics, pharmacology, and behavioral methods.
We are also investigating the role that olfactory signals play in the rewarding properties of nicotine delivered in vapor. Ultimately, we are working to map out a neuronal circuit that modulates aversive affective and somatic states associated with drug withdrawal and addiction with the goal of identifying novel therapeutic targets.