Innovative, collaborative research.

The Department of Neuroscience at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine is devoted to outstanding research and committed to excellence in education. Our faculty participate in teaching medical and graduate students and are proud of their contribution to this important enterprise.

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What We Do

Research

Our research spans the full spectrum of investigation into neural function and dysfunction, bridging the levels of genes, molecules, dendrites, axons, cell types, circuits, systems and behavior.

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Education

In addition to directing their own independent research programs, our faculty are responsible for supervising the research training of postdoctoral fellows and graduate students.

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Recent Publications

How Dopamine Enables Learning from Aversion.

Lopez GC, Lerner TN.

Curr Opin Behav Sci. 2025 Feb;61:101476. doi: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2024.101476. Epub 2024 Dec 21.

Pharmacological blocking of spinal GABA_A receptors in monkeys reduces sensory transmission to the spinal cord, thalamus, and cortex.

Mahrous AA, Liang L, Balaguer JM, Ho JC, Grigsby EM, Karapetyan V, Damiani A, Fields DP, Gonzalez-Martinez JA, Gerszten PC, Bennett DJ, Heckman CJ, Pirondini E, Capogrosso M.

Cell Rep. 2024 Dec 18;44(1):115100. doi: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.115100. Online ahead of print.

Roles of ANK2/ankyrin-B in neurodevelopmental disorders: Isoform functions and implications for autism spectrum disorder and epilepsy.

Yoon S, Penzes P.

Curr Opin Neurobiol. 2024 Dec 3;90:102938. doi: 10.1016/j.conb.2024.102938. Online ahead of print.

Cortical dynamics in hand/forelimb S1 and M1 evoked by brief photostimulation of the mouse's hand.

Novo DP, Gao M, Yu J, Barrett JM, Shepherd GMG.

bioRxiv [Preprint]. 2024 Dec 2:2024.12.02.626335. doi: 10.1101/2024.12.02.626335.

ENIGMA-Chronic Pain: a worldwide initiative to identify brain correlates of chronic pain.

Quidé Y, Jahanshad N, Andoh J, Antoniou G, Apkarian AV, Ashar YK, Badran BW, Baird CL, Baxter L, Bell TR, Blanco-Hinojo L, Borckardt J, Cheung CL, Ciampi de Andrade D, Couto BA, Cox SR, Cruz-Almeida Y, Dannlowski U, De Martino E, de Tommaso M, Deus J, Domin M, Egorova-Brumley N, Elliott J, Fanton S, Fauchon C, Flor H, Franz CE, Gatt JM, Gerdhem P, Gilman JM, Gollub RL, Govind V, Graven-Nielsen T, Håkansson G, Hales T, Haswell C, Heukamp NJ, Hu L, Huang L, Hussain A, Jensen K, Kircher T, Kremen WS, Leehr EJ, Lindquist M, Loggia ML, Lotze M, Martucci KT, Meeker TJ, Meinert S, Millard SK, Morey RA, Murillo C, Nees F, Nenadic I, Park HRP, Peng X, Ploner M, Pujol J, Robayo LE, Salan T, Seminowicz DA, Serian A, Slater R, Stein F, Stevens J, Strauss S, Sun D, Vachon-Presseau E, Valdes-Hernandez PA, Vanneste S, Vernon M, Verriotis M, Wager TD, Widerstrom-Noga E, Woodbury A, Zeidan F, Bhatt RR, Ching CRK, Haddad E, Thomopoulos SI, Thompson PM, Gustin SM.

Pain. 2024 Dec 1;165(12):2662-2666. doi: 10.1097/j.pain.0000000000003317. Epub 2024 Jul 26.

A universal hippocampal memory code across animals and environments.

Wirtshafter HS, Solla SA, Disterhoft JF.

bioRxiv [Preprint]. 2024 Nov 19:2024.10.24.620127. doi: 10.1101/2024.10.24.620127.

Levetiracetam prevents Aβ₄₂ production through SV2a-dependent modulation of App processing in Alzheimer's disease models.

Rao NR, DeGulis O, Nomura T, Lee S, Hark TJ, Dynes JC, Dexter EX, Dulewicz M, Ge J, Upadhyay A, Fornasiero EF, Vassar R, Hanrieder J, Contractor A, Savas JN.

bioRxiv [Preprint]. 2024 Oct 28:2024.10.28.620698. doi: 10.1101/2024.10.28.620698.

μ-Opioid Receptor Modulation of the Glutamatergic/GABAergic Midbrain Inputs to the Mouse Dorsal Hippocampus.

Kim HR, Dey S, Sekerkova G, Martina M.

J Neurosci. 2024 Oct 23;44(43):e0653242024. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0653-24.2024.

Hand-Jaw Coordination as Mice Handle Food Is Organized around Intrinsic Structure-Function Relationships.

Barrett JM, Martin ME, Gao M, Druzinsky RE, Miri A, Shepherd GMG.

J Neurosci. 2024 Oct 16;44(42):e0856242024. doi: 10.1523/JNEUROSCI.0856-24.2024.

α-Synuclein pathology disrupts mitochondrial function in dopaminergic and cholinergic neurons at-risk in Parkinson's disease.

Geibl FF, Henrich MT, Xie Z, Zampese E, Ueda J, Tkatch T, Wokosin DL, Nasiri E, Grotmann CA, Dawson VL, Dawson TM, Chandel NS, Oertel WH, Surmeier DJ.

Mol Neurodegener. 2024 Oct 8;19(1):69. doi: 10.1186/s13024-024-00756-2.

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Basic Science Administration

Our department is supported by the Basic Science Administration group. The team provides assistance related to research and financial administration, professional affairs, facilities and communications.

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Starzl Academy

Physician-Scientist Training & Resources

We offer a wide range of resources, mentorship opportunities and formal training programs to help our residents and fellows excel as physician-scientists. Explore all of the resources and hear from housestaff who are making research a major part of their career development plans.

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