Associate Professor
My research interest is in the area of developmental impacts, including genetic, environmental, and stress-related factors, on cognitive ability and behavioral sequelae throughout the lifetime. Particular interests are in developmental manganese. Using CRISPR/Cas9, we developed a floxed Slc30A10 line that we are crossing to TH-Cre rats to understand how Mn is regulated in cells in the presence of excel Mn. The Slc30A10 protein is a intracellular Mn exporter. We hypothesize that as Mn accumulates during chronic Mn exposure, it slowly reaches intracellular concentrations that inhibit the exporter causing Mn to become trapped in the cell leading eventually to neurotoxicity.
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