Neuropharmacology explores how drugs affect the nervous system and behavior. Researchers in the Pharmacology Department at Vanderbilt University study the molecular and behavioral adaptations to therapeutic neuroactive drugs and to drugs of abuse. Particular foci include G-protein coupled receptors and their affiliated protein complexes and signaling pathways, epigenetic mechanisms, ion channels, and neurotransmitter transporters. Researchers are finding new drug targets and are gaining insight into how the genetic environment could influence drug action.