I am a neuroscientist investigating how changes in brain development affect behavior using animal models of pediatric neurological disorders. I focus on the causes of neurodevelopmental disorders, learning disabilities, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), manganese and pyrethroid neurotoxicity, and the long-term effects of proton radiotherapy.
Dr. Michael Williams and I merged labs to enhance progress by leveraging different scientific backgrounds to work on shared goals. Our lab studies egocentric/procedural/habit learning which is striatally-mediated. We developed a test to better assess this ability, the Cincinnati water maze (CWM). Reducing dopamine in the dorsal medial or dorsal lateral striatum causes CWM deficits while sparing spatial learning in the Morris water maze (MWM). However, reducing dopamine in both striatal regions impairs both tests. The basis of this is unknown and is under investigation.
We also created an Animal Behavior Core (ABC). The ABC was developed to collaborate with investigators throughout Cincinnati Children’s and the University of Cincinnati (UC) on behavioral phenotyping. The core runs the tests, analyzes the data and writes the findings for grant applications and publications.
Some of the notable projects of the Vorhees/Williams lab include the development of the first latrophilin-3 (Lphn3) constitutive and conditional knockout (KO) rats, the first Slc30a10 conditional KO rat, the first phosphodiesterase-1b (Pde1b) KO mouse, and the first creatine transporter KO mouse (since transferred to Dr. Skelton), and for ways to improve proton radiotherapy. Some specific findings include:
My research has been supported and funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and with grants from the National Science Foundation (NSF), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Department of Defense Biomedical Research Program, foundations and industry. I am currently serving or have served on scientific advisory panels for the FDA, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), California Environmental Protection Agency (CalEPA) and the National Academy of Science.
Some of my other activities and positions include:
BA: University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, 1971.
MA: Neurobiology Program, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 1973.
PhD: Neurobiology Program, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, 1976.
Postdoctoral Research Fellow: Cincinnati Children's Research Foundation, Cincinnati, OH, 1978.
Models of pediatric neurodevelopmental disorders; neurotoxicity of pesticides and manganese
Neurology
Impulsive choice in two different rat models of ADHD-Spontaneously hypertensive and Lphn3 knockout rats. Frontiers in Neuroscience. 2023; 17.
Developmental deltamethrin: Sex-specific hippocampal effects in Sprague Dawley rats. 2022; 3.
Comprehensive Behavioral Analysis of Opsin 3 (Encephalopsin)-Deficient Mice Identifies Role in Modulation of Acoustic Startle Reflex. eNeuro. 2022; 9.
Cognitive and behavioral effects of whole brain conventional or high dose rate (FLASH) proton irradiation in a neonatal Sprague Dawley rat model. PLoS ONE. 2022; 17.
Latrophilin-3 heterozygous versus homozygous mutations in Sprague Dawley rats: Effects on egocentric and allocentric memory and locomotor activity. Genes, Brain and Behavior. 2022; 21.
Neurobehavioral abnormalities following prenatal psychosocial stress are differentially modulated by maternal environment. Translational Psychiatry. 2022; 12.
Review of rodent models of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews. 2022; 132:621-637.
An assessment of executive function in two different rat models of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder: Spontaneously hypertensive versus Lphn3 knockout rats. Genes, Brain and Behavior. 2021; 20.
Review of Conventional and High Dose Rate Brain Radiation (FLASH): Neurobehavioural, Neurocognitive and Assessment Issues in Rodent Models. Comparative Haematology International. 2021; 33:e482-e491.
A novel role for the ADHD risk gene latrophilin-3 in learning and memory in Lphn3 knockout rats. Neurobiology of Disease. 2021; 158.