Brett Nabit
Department: Pharmacology
Faculty Mentor: Danny Winder, Ph.D.
Dissertation Description: Neuronal mechanisms of stress and addiction
My research interests are centered around the neuronal mechanisms underlying maladaptive behavior in psychiatric disorders such stress/anxiety, addiction and depression. Specifically, I am interested in the stress-sensitive modulation of neurotransmission in the Bed Nucleus of the Stria Terminalis (BNST), a region of the brain centrally involved in coordinating both the CNS and body-wide stress responses. My research projects focus on the involvement of α2A adrenergic receptors in relapse to drug seeking behavior and the role of metabotropic glutamate receptors in stress and addiction pathophysiology. Ultimately, our lab wishes to delineate mechanisms by which drug- and stress-induced alterations in neuronal plasticity produce maladaptive behavior.