I joined the Department of Neuroscience at the University of Virginia in 1997, where I am a Research Associate. My research interests are in molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying cell growth and plasticity in the nervous system. First, in Oswald Steward's lab I studied the process of mRNA localization in astrocytes.
Astrocytes are key players in the cellular response to injury in the nervous system.
It is thought that the reactive response of astrocytes following injury may be both deleterious and beneficial for neuronal growth. We focused on the mechanisms underlying GFAP mRNA localization to astrocyte processes, an important step in the expression of the GFAP gene. At the present time, my research focus is on the study a novel immediate early gene, arc. Arc is rapidly and transiently induced in neurons by intense neuronal activity. Arc activity-induced expression is particularly high in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus.