Dr. Robert A. Neff

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University of California, San Diego
Division of Biological Sciences
Section of Neurobiology
Appointed: 2004
Professional Headshot of Robert A. Neff

Mailing Address

Neurobiology Section
University of California, San Diego
9500 Gilman Drive
Biology Division
La Jolla, California 92093
United States

Contact Information

rneff@ucsd.edu

Qualifications

Ph.D., George Washington University, Pharmacology, 2004.
B.S., Rhodes College, Biology, 1994.

Expertise and Research Interests

I am currently focusing on nicotinic neurotransmission in the nervous system. I am interested in how proteins in the post-synaptic density can help mediate or modulate the various components of nicotinic signalling (postsynaptic currents, calcium dependant cellular events, etc.). In addition, I am interested in the role of nicotinic neurotransmission in development--specifically the role of nAChRs in regulating neuronal chloride gradients and synapse formation. I have adopted imaging techniques, biochemical and molecular approaches to complement electrophysiological methods of investigating these phenomena.

My doctoral research focused on the cellular mechanisms of central cardiorespiratory interactions. Specifically, I studied respiratory-related inhibitory synaptic IPSCs recorded from identified preganglionic cardioinhibitory neurons in the nucleus ambigous and the effects of prenatal nicotine exposure on this cardiorespiratory interaction. In addition, I studied the effects of acute isocapnic hypoxia on respiratory modulation of cardiac neuron activity, and the effects of prenatal nicotine exposure on the hypoxia-induced changes in inhibitory respiratory-related synaptic inputs to cardiac neurons.

Keywords

COS Keywords:

Hypoxia, Nervous System, Neurobiology, Neurons, Neurophysiology, Neuroscience, Neurotransmitters, Nicotine, Pharmacology, Physiology.

Additional Terms:

Nervous System, Neurophysiology, Pharmacology.

Memberships

American Physiological Society
American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics
Society for Neuroscience

Honors and Awards

2003, James Douglas Goddard Award, GWU Department of Pharmacology

Previous Positions

1994-1998, Research Assistant, University of Tennessee - Knoxville, Health Science Center, Physiology

Funding Received

  • American Heart Association (AHA): Jocelyn Beard Moran Memorial Predoctoral Fellowship, $36,400, Jul 1, 2002 to Jul 1, 2004.
  • Philip Morris External Research Program: Philip Morris External Research Program Postdoctoral Fellowship, $86,400, 2006 to 2008.

Publications

  • Neff RA, Gomez-Varela D, Fernandes CC, Berg DK (May 2009) Postsynaptic scaffolds for nicotinic receptors on neurons., Acta pharmacologica Sinica Abstract
  • Liu Z, Conroy WG, Stawicki TM, Nai Q, Neff RA, Berg DK (Mar 2008) EphB receptors co-distribute with a nicotinic receptor subtype and regulate nicotinic downstream signaling in neurons., Molecular and cellular neurosciences Abstract
  • Liu Z, Neff RA, Berg DK (Dec 2006) Sequential interplay of nicotinic and GABAergic signaling guides neuronal development., Science (New York, N.Y.), 314 (5805), 1610-3 Abstract
  • Evans C, Wang J, Neff R, Mendelowitz D (2005) Hypoxia recruits a respiratory-related excitatory pathway to brainstem premotor cardiac vagal neurons in animals exposed to prenatal nicotine., Neuroscience, 133 (4), 1073-9
  • Bouairi E, Neff R, Evans C, Gold A, Andresen MC, Mendelowitz D, Respiratory Sinus Arrhythmia in Freely Moving and Anesthetized Rats, Journal of Applied Physiology (Bethesda, Md. : 1985), 97(4), 1431-6, October 2004
  • Neff RA, Simmens SJ, Evans C, Mendelowitz D, Prenatal nicotine exposure alters central cardiorespiratory responses to hypoxia in rats: implications for sudden infant death syndrome, The Journal of Neuroscience : the Official Journal of the Society for Neuroscience., 24(42), 9261-8, October 2004 Abstract
  • Venkatesan P, Baxi S, Evans C, Neff R, Wang X, Mendelowitz D, Glycinergic inputs to cardiac vagal neurons in the nucleus ambiguus are inhibited by nociceptin and (micro)-selective opioids, Journal of Neurophysiology, 90(3), 1581-8, September 2003 Abstract
  • Neff RA, Wang J, Baxi S, Evans C, Mendelowitz D, Respiratory sinus arrhythmia: endogenous activation of nicotinic receptors mediates respiratory modulation of brainstem cardioinhibitory parasympathetic neurons, Circulation Research, 93(6), 565-72, September 2003 Abstract
  • Evans C, Baxi S, Neff R, Venkatesan P, Mendelowitz D, Synaptic activation of cardiac vagal neurons by capsaicin sensitive and insensitive sensory neurons, Brain Research, 979(1-2), 210-5, July 2003 Abstract
  • Parfenova H, Neff RA 3rd, Alonso JS, Shlopov BV, Jamal CN, Sarkisova SA, Leffler CW, Cerebral vascular endothelial heme oxygenase: Expression, localization, and activation by glutamate, American Journal of Physiology. Cell Physiology, 281(6), C1954-63, December 2001
  • Wang J, Irnaten M, Neff RA, Venkatesan P, Evans C, Loewy AD, Mettenleiter TC, Mendelowitz D, Synaptic and neurotransmitter activation of cardiac vagal neurons in the nucleus ambiguus, Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 940, 237-46, June 2001 Abstract
  • Irnaten M, Neff RA, Wang J, Loewy AD, Mettenleiter TC, Mendelowitz D, Activity of cardiorespiratory networks revealed by transsynaptic virus expressing GFP, Journal of Neurophysiology, 85(1), 435-8, Jan 2001 Abstract
  • Fan Z, Neff RA, Susceptibility of ATP-sensitive K+ channels to cell stress through mediation of phosphoinositides as examined by photoirradiation, Journal of Physiology, 529 Pt 3, 707-21, December 2000 Abstract
  • Neff RA, Humphrey J, Mihalevich M, Mendelowitz D, Nicotine enhances presynaptic and postsynaptic glutamatergic neurotransmission to activate cardiac parasympathetic neurons, Circulation Research, 83(12), 1241-7, December 1998 Abstract
  • Neff RA, Mihalevich M, Mendelowitz D, Stimulation of NTS activates NMDA and non-NMDA receptors in rat cardiac vagal neurons in the nucleus ambiguus, Brain Research, 792(2), 277-82, May 1998 Abstract
  • Willis A, Mihalevich M, Neff RA, Mendelowitz D, Three types of postsynaptic glutamatergic receptors are activated in DMNX neurons upon stimulation of NTS, The American Journal of Physiology, 271(6 Pt 2), R1614-9, December 1996 Abstract
  • Mihalevich M, Neff RA, Mendelowitz D, Voltage-gated currents in identified parasympathetic cardiac neurons in the nucleus ambiguus, Brain Research, 739(1-2), 258-62, November 1996 Abstract
  • Neff RA, Hansen MK, Mendelowitz D, Acetylcholine activates a nicotinic receptor and an inward current in dorsal motor nucleus of the vagus neurons in vitro, Neuroscience Letters, 195(3), 163-6, August 1995 Abstract

Profile Details

Last Updated: 5/21/2009

COS Expertise ID #1065772
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