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Undergraduate Institution and Major/Degree:
- St. Cloud State University, BA in Philosophy
Major Advisor(s):
My current research examines the role the amino acid D-serine plays as the coagonist to the NMDA receptor in the retina. The coagonist site was commonly referred to as the “glycine site” because it was assumed that glycine was the endogenous agonist. It is now clear that endogenous D-serine is active at this site in many places in the nervous system. We have obtained evidence that the retina is one such location. Much, however, is still unknown. For example, the rate and method of release are still unknown. Equally unclear is whether or not glycine, the presumed coagonist, plays any role at the NMDA receptor at all.
To tackle this issue, I am currently using electrophysiological recordings, both extracellular and whole-cell, combined with capillary electrophoresis (to measure D-serine and glycine levels).
Lab Rotations:
- Jose Pardo
- Chuck Nelson
- Bob Miller
Courses Taken Beyond the Core Courses:
- BIOL 4004 Cell Biol
- NSc 5201 Computational Neurosci
- NSc 5202 Theoretical Neurosci
- STAT 5021
- PA 5701 (Political Affairs) Science and State
- PA 5112 Public Budgeting
Conferences Attended:
- Society for Neuroscience annual meeting - Fall 2003, 2004, 2005
Conference Presentations:
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D-serine is an endogenous coagonist of the NMDA receptor in the salamander retina. E.C. Gustafson, E.R. Stevens, R.F. Miller. Presented at the 35th Annual Society for Neuroscience (SFN) Conference in Washington DC, 2005.
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Glycine transporters enable D-serine modulation of NMDARs currents in the retina. E.C. Gustafson, E.R. Stevens, R.F. Miller. Presented at ARVO Conference Fort Lauderdale, FL, 2006.
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D-serine deaminase: a new tool that establishes D-serine as an endogenous coagonist of NMDA receptors in the retina. E.C. Gustafson and R.F. Miller. Presented at ARVO Conference Fort Lauderdale, FL, 2007.
Committee Members:
- Paulo Kofuji
- Eric Newman
- Micheal Bowser
Publications:
Professional Memberships:
- Society for Neuroscience
- American Physiological Society
- The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (AVRO)
Home Town:
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