SHeinemann

Personal

Bio

Stephen F. Heinemann, a professor in the Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory, studies the molecular details of communication among brain cells. The synapse plays a key role in communicating information between brain cells and it is likely that biochemical changes at the synapse underlie some aspects of higher brain function. Most plausible theories of learning and memory depend upon changes in the efficiency of chemical synapses, which probably involves changes in receptors, ion channels and neurotransmitter release. It is also now known that these molecules can be directly involved in human disease. Most drugs that are used to treat mental illness are known to work either on the receptors or the metabolism of the transmitters at the synapse. The work in the laboratory is focused on the molecular biology and physiology of the glutamate and nicotinic receptors expressed in the brain. A major goal is to understand the regulation of synaptic function and the molecular biology of learning.

Among other notable achievements, his lab has isolated a gene containing the blueprints for a receptor critical to learning and memory, and identified the receptors that respond to nicotine. Since neurological ailments, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's; drug addiction; and mental disorders, such as depression and schizophrenia, are fundamentally disorders of brain cell communication, this research will provide new insights into the treatment of these disorders. Discoveries in Heinemann's lab are currently being used by pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to develop drugs for stroke, epilepsy, Parkinson's and Alzheimer's diseases, as well as mental conditions, such as nicotine addiction, depression and schizophrenia.

URL

http://www.salk.edu/faculty/faculty_details.php?id=26