Affiliated Faculty
Professor in the Departments of Cell Biology, Physiology and Medicine
Other Affiliations: Program in Neuroscience
Huntington's Disease
Anthony Carruthers, Ph.D.
Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, and Physiology
See current details under his listing for Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology.
Craig F. Ferris, Ph.D.
Professor of Psychiatry, Cell Biology and Physiology,
Department of Psychiatry;
Director, Program in Neuropsychiatric Sciences
B.S., University of Massachusetts, 1974;
M.S., New York Medical College, 1976;
Ph.D., New York Medical College, 1979.
Office: S7-852
Phone: (508) 856-5530
Email: craig.ferris@umassmed.edu
The Role of Vasopressin and Serotonin in Aggressive and Dominant/Subordinate Behaviors
My Research has been on the physiology and chemistry of peptides and other neurochemical messengers that are found within the mammalian central nervous system and gut. Recent focus has been on the role of vasopressin and serotonin in aggressive and dominant/subordinate behaviors.
Representative Publications:
Ferris, C.F., Potegal, M. Vasopressin receptor blockade in the anterior hypothalamus suppresses intraspecific agression in male golden hamsters. Physiology and Behavior 44:235-239, 1988.
Ferris, C.F., Axelson, J.F., Martin, A.M., Roberge, L.F. Vasopressin immunoreactivity in the anterior hypothalamus is altered during the establishment of dominant/subordinate relationships between hamsters. Neuroscience 29:675-683, 1989.
Ferris, C.F., Gold, L., De Vries, G.J., Potegal, M. Evidence for a functional and anatomical relationship between the lateral septum and the hypothalamus in the control of flank marking behavior in golden hamsters. J. Comparative Neurology 293:476-485, 1990.
Ferris, C.F., Pilapil, C.G., Hayden-Hixson, D., Wiley, R.G., Koh, E.T. Functionally and anatomically distinct populations of vasopressinergic magnocellular neurons in the female golden hamster. J. Neuroendocrinol. 4:193-205, 1992.
Delville, Y., Mansour, K.M., Quan, E.W., Yules, B.M., Ferris, C.F. Postnatal development of the vasopressinergic system in golden hamsters. Develop. Brain Res. 81:230-239, 1994.
Lawrence J. Hayward, M.D., Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Neurology
Department of Neurology
See current details under his listing for Neuroscience.
J. Mark Madison, M.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine and Physiology,
Departments of Medicine and Physiology
B.A. Carleton College, 1975;
M.D. Harvard Medical School, 1979.
Office: S6-723
Phone: (508) 856-6938
E-mail: MadisonM@ummhc.org
Mechanisms of Signal Transduction in Airway Smooth Muscle Cells
Contraction of airway smooth muscle cells results in one component of the airway obstruction experienced by patients with asthma. This laboratory studies the biochemical mechanisms underlying contraction and relaxation of airway smooth muscle with special emphasis given to "crosstalk" between cholinergic and beta-adrenergic signal transduction pathways. Recently, the laboratory has focused on M2 muscarinic receptor regulation of adenylyl cyclase and the role this may have in determining cytosolic calcium concentrations. These studies have been performed using intact airway smooth muscle cells dispersed from bovine tracheas.
Representative Publications:
Yamaguchi, H., Kajita, J., Madison, J.M. Isoproterenol increases peripheral [Ca
2+
]i and decreases inner [Ca
2+
]i in single airway smooth muscle cells. Am. J. Physiol. 268:C771-C779, 1995.
Schaefer, O.P., Ethier, M.F., Madison, J.M. Muscarinic regulation of cyclic AMP in bovine trachealis cells. Am. J. Respir. Cell Mol. Biol. 13:217-226, 1995.
Ethier, M.F., Schaefer, O.P., Madison, J.M. Muscarinic receptor reserve for inhibition of cyclic AMP accumulation in bovine trachealis cells. Am. J. Physiol: Lung Cell and Mol Physiol. 270:L199-207, 1996.
Madison, J.M., Yamaguchi, H. Muscarinic inhibition of adenylyl cyclase regulates intracellular calcium in single airway smooth muscle cells. Am. J. Physiol: Lung Cell and Mol Physiol. 270:L208-214, 1996.
David Paydarfar, M.D.,
Associate Professor of Neurology
Neural Regulation of Autonomic Functions: Breathing, Swallowing, and Circulation