Seminar by Prof. Tepper "Neurophysiology and Synaptic Connections of Striatal Interneurons"

Speaker: Professor James Tepper

Affiliation: Rutgers, The State University of Newark

Title: "Neurophysiology and Synaptic Connections of Striatal Interneurons"

Abstract:

The striatum, the principal input stage of the basal ganglia, is comprised mostly of GABAergic spiny projection neurons (SPNSs). Despite comprising less than 5% of all striatal neurons in rodents, there are also several populations of interneurons in the striatum, many of them only recently discovered with the aid of molecular biological techniques including different transgenic mice expressing cell-type dependent fluorescent markers and/or Cre recombinase, viral transduction and optogenetics.  All of the “novel” striatal interneurons are GABAergic, but are distinguished by differential expression of various enzymes, peptides and/or receptors.  The activity of different striatal interneurons interacts with various striatal afferents to modulate the output of SPNs. This talk will review briefly the intrinsic electrophysiological and neuroanatomical properties of several of these GABAergic interneurons and focus on their extrinsic and intrinsic synaptic connectivity.

Biography:

EDUCATION
 1983 Ph.D., Biological Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO  
 1979 M.A., Biological Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO  
 1975 B.A., Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO  
 
 
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

July 2019- present Board of Governors Professor of Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ

July 2006 - 2019 Distinguished Professor, Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ

June 2006-present Adjunct Professor, Department of Neurosciences, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ

May 2004- September 2004- Visiting Scientist, MRC Anatomical Neuropharmacology Unit, Oxford University, Oxford, UK

October 1998 to June 2006 Professor, Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ 

April 1995 to May, 2006 Adjunct Associate Professor, Department of Neurosciences, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ

July 1993 to September 1998 Associate Professor, Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ

February 1990 to June 1990 Visiting Assistant Professor, Department of Psychology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ

July 1989 to March 1995 Adjunct Assistant Professor, Department of Neurosciences, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, New Jersey Medical School, Newark, NJ

September 1987 to June 1993 Assistant Professor, Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, Newark, NJ

February 1987 to August 1987 Assistant Research Psychobiologist, Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego School of Medicine, La Jolla, CA

February 1986 to January 1987 Post-Graduate Researcher, Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego School of Medicine, La Jolla, CA

July 1980 to January 1986 Staff Research Associate I-IV, Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego School of Medicine, La Jolla, CA