VOLLUM INSTITUTE
| ||
|
Laurence Trussell received his Ph.D. in Biology from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1983. After initial postdoctoral work at UCLA, he obtained further training at Washington University, St. Louis. In 1990, he received a faculty appointment at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. In 1999, he was appointed as professor in the Oregon Hearing Research Center with a joint appointment at the Vollum Institute. Research InterestsUsing chemical and electrical signals, neurons preserve, process, and integrate information about sensory stimuli in the environment. Each sensory modality presents the brain with special challenges. These challenges are met by unique neuronal circuitry and by unique cellular characteristics in the neurons themselves. Laurence Trussell and his associates are interested in the fine tuning of membrane properties and synapses requisite to the incredible feats of computation performed in the auditory system, where even microsecond differences in signals have behavioral consequences. The Trussell lab works on neurons in the cochlear nuclei and trapezoid body because their synapses offer the opportunity to study synaptic transmission at high resolution and because the investigators can relate findings about cellular mechanisms to activity measured in vivo. Patch-clamp analyses reveal that these neurons express a complement of glutamate receptors and potassium channels that enable the cells to fire reliably in response to incoming stimuli, thus passaging signals with little temporal jitter. The lab is finding that mechanisms of neurotransmitter release and clearance are also fine-tuned to the tasks of preserving timing information. Moreover, these neurons express presynaptic receptors that regulate electrical activity in unusual ways. Trussell and colleagues employ electrophysiological and optical approaches to reveal how single synapses participate in this process. Other studies in the lab are directed toward understanding the mechanisms and functions of long-term synaptic plasticities within auditory circuits. Selected PublicationsTzounopoulos, T., Kim, Y., Oertel, D., and Trussell, L.O. (2004) Cell-specific, spike timing-dependent plasticities in the dorsal cochlear nucleus. Nature Neurosci. 7:719-725. Awatramani, G.B., Turecek R., and Trussell, L.O. (2004) Inhibitory control at a synaptic relay. J. Neurosci. 24:2643-2647. Lawrence, J., Brenowitz, S., and Trussell, L.O. (2003) The mechanism of action of aniracetam at synaptic alpha-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid (AMPA) receptors: indirect and direct effects on desensitization. Mol. Pharmacol. 64:269-278. Turecek, R. and Trussell, L.O. (2002) Reciprocal developmental regulation of presynaptic ionotropic receptors. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 99:13884-13889. Brenowitz, S. and Trussell, L.O. (2001) Minimizing synaptic depression by control of release probability. J. Neurosci. 21:1857-1867. Turecek, R. and Trussell, L.O. (2001) Presynaptic glycine receptors enhance transmitter release at a mammalian central synapse. Nature 411:587-590. Gardner, S.M., Trussell, L.O., and Oertel, D. (2001) Correlation of AMPA receptor subunit composition with synaptic input in the mammalian cochlear nuclei. J. Neurosci. 21:7428-7437.
Home | About the Institute | Faculty & Staff | Research Advances All content © 2007 The Vollum Institute. |
