Vollum Faculty and Research
Vollum Institute Faculty
Isabelle Baconguis, Ph.D.
Assistant Scientist
Research interests
ion channel, sodium channel, structural biology, cryo-EM, electrophysiology, ion selectivity, channel physiology and gating, protein biochemistry
Peter Barr-Gillespie, Ph.D.
Chief Research Officer, OHSU
Professor, OHRC
Vollum Joint Appointment
Research interests
hair cells, mechanotransduction, myosin, motors, ion channels, cytoskeleton, pumps and transporters, inner ear, hearing, balance
Paul Brehm, Ph.D.
Senior Scientist
Research interests
zebrafish genetics, electrophysiology, ion channel function, cellular neuroscience
James Frank, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor, Chemical Physiology & Biochemistry
Vollum Joint Appointment
Research interests
chemical biology, lipid, endocannabinoid, neural circuits, optical control
Marc Freeman, Ph.D.
Director and Senior Scientist
Research interests
neuronal-glial interactions, neuronal circuitry, neurodegeneration, astrocytes, Drosophila genetics
Richard Goodman, M.D., Ph.D.
Senior Scientist
Research interests
metabolic regulation of gene expression, characterization of activity-regulated genes
Eric Gouaux, Ph.D.
Senior Scientist
Investigator, HHMI
Research interests
chemical synapses and synaptic transmission, glutamate receptors, neurotransmitter transporters, ligand-gated ion channels, cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), x-ray crystallography, membrane proteins
Skyler Jackman, Ph.D.
Assistant Scientist
Research interests
neurotransmitter release, short-term synaptic plasticity, neural circuits, presynaptic calcium sensors
Gail Mandel, Ph.D.
Senior Scientist
Research interests
neurogenesis, microRNA, transcription, Rett Syndrome, neuronal circuitry, epigenetics, neurodevelopment, neuronal-glial interactions
Tianyi Mao, Ph.D.
Scientist
Research interests
basal ganglia circuit analysis, cortical-subcortical interactions, optogenetics, genetically engineered calcium indicators, two-photon calcium imaging
Kelly Monk, Ph.D.
Co-Director and Senior Scientist
Research interests
glial cell biology, neuron-glial interactions, glial-glial interactions, myelination and remyelination, zebrafish
Swetha Murthy, Ph.D.
Assistant Scientist
Research interests
mechanotransduction, ion channels, electrophysiology
Steve Reichow, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Chemical Physiology & Biochemistry
Vollum Joint Appointment
Research interests
molecular mechanisms driving biology, cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), membrane channels, protein aggregation, lens biology
Arpiar "Arpy" Saunders, Ph.D.
Assistant Scientist
Research interests
single-cell genomics, host-virus interactions, neural circuits, comparative neuroscience, synapse biology
Laurence Trussell, Ph.D.
Professor, Oregon Hearing Research Center
Vollum Joint Appointment
Research interests
brainstem circuits that process acoustic signals, synaptic physiology — how cells and synapses preserve information provided by the ear
Henrique von Gersdorff, Ph.D.
Senior Scientist
Research interests
exocytosis and endocytosis of synaptic vesicles, short and long-term plasticity in the retina and brainstem, electrophysiology of auditory pathway
Gary Westbrook, M.D.
Senior Scientist
Research interests
neurogenesis, hippocampal microcircuits, glutamate receptors, epilepsy, regeneration and repair, synaptic transmission
John Williams, Ph.D.
Senior Scientist
Research interests
opiate desensitization and tolerance, receptor trafficking, dendrodendritic transmission
Kevin Wright, Ph.D.
Scientist
Research interests
sensory circuit development, transcription, axon guidance, neuronal migration, synaptogenesis, genetics
Haining Zhong, Ph.D.
Senior Scientist
Research interests
neuromodulatory signaling during animal behavior, experience-dependent plasticity, striatum, dopamine, norepinephrine, locomotion, cAMP/protein kinase A (PKA), two photon FLIM-FRET imaging, CRISPR gene editing
Emeritus Faculty Members
John P. Adelman, Ph.D.
Research interests: potassium channels, Ca2+-activated, structure-function, synaptic transmission and plasticity
Wolfhard Almers, Ph.D.
Research interests: mechanisms of exocytosis and endocytosis, total internal reflection fluorescence, single molecule imaging
Michael Forte, Ph.D.
Research interests: mitochondrial permeability transition pore, neurodegeneration, ischemic cell death, small molecule therapies
Craig Jahr, Ph.D.
Research interests: synaptic transmission, glutamate transport, multivesicular release, electrophysiology, two-photon microscopy
Thomas Soderling, Ph.D.
Research interests: calcium, protein kinases, learning and memory, neuron development