Degree Program Offered: Doctor of Philosophy

Director of Graduate Program: John E. Pintar, Ph.D., UMDNJ-SPH, Room 363, Busch Campus (732-235-5388)

Members of the Graduate Faculty

Sidney B. Auerbach, Associate Professor of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, SAS; Ph.D., Wisconsin (Madison)
Control of neurotransmitters in the brain

Maureen M. Barr, Associate Professor of Genetics, SAS/WIM; Ph.D., Columbia 
A human disease model: C. elegans cilia development, morphogenesis, and function

Timothy M. Casey, Professor of Entomology, SEBS; Ph.D., California (Los Angeles)
Respiration; bioenergetics; thermoregulation

Daniel S. Cowen, Associate Professor of Psychiatry, UMDNJ-RWJMS; M.D., Ph.D., Case Western Reserve
Coupling of 5-HT receptors to cellular signals for protein synthesis

Gabriella D'Arcangelo, Associate Professor of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, SAS; Ph.D., SUNY (Stony Brook)
Molecular mechanisms of neuronal proliferation, differentiation, and migration

Robin L. Davis, Professor of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, SAS; Ph.D., Stanford
Regeneration and electrophysiology of peripheral auditory neurons

Emanuel M. DiCicco-Bloom, Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, Pediatrics (Neurology), UMDNJ-RWJMS; M.D., Cornell Medical College
Cellular and molecular regulation of neurogenesis; animal models of autism; effects of environmental factor on brain development

Cheryl F. Dreyfus, Acting Chair and Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., Cornell
Role of environmental factors on brain neuron ontogeny

Monica Driscoll, Professor of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, SAS; Ph.D., Harvard
Molecular genetics of neurodegeneration and aging, mechanotransduction

Isaac Edery, Professor of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, SAS/CABM; Ph.D., McGill (Canada)
Molecular mechanism underlying biological clocks

Julie M. Fagan, Associate Professor of Animal Sciences, SEBS; Ph.D., Arizona
Muscle growth; mechanisms of protein breakdown in mammalian cells in health and in disease

Bonnie Firestein, Associate Professor of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, SAS; Ph.D., California (San Diego)
Regulation of dendritic morphology; targeting of neuronal proteins and the neuronal cytoskeleton

Martin Grumet, Professor of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, SAS; Ph.D., Johns Hopkins
Stem cells and transplantation into the nervous system

Ronald Hart, Professor of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, SAS; Ph.D., Michigan
MicroRNA modulation of neural stem cell gene expression networks

Nancy Hayes, Associate Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., North Carolina
Genetic regulation of cell proliferation and neurogenesis in the mouse CNS

Karl Herrup, Professor and Chair of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, SAS; Ph.D., Stanford
Cell cycle regulation in the neuron and its relationship to neurodegeneration

Sarah Hitchcock-DeGregori, Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., Case Western Reserve
Actin cytoskeleton and regulation of actin dynamics using cellular, biochemical, and biophysical methods

Shu-Chan Hsu, Associate Professor of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, SAS; Ph.D., British Columbia (Canada)
Molecular mechanisms of synoptic development and function

Arnold G. Hyndman, Professor of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, SAS; Ph.D., California (Los Angeles)
Development of CNS neurons

Kenneth D. Irvine, Professor of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, WIM/SAS; Ph.D., Stanford
Cell signaling and growth control during Drosophila development

William G. Johnson, Professor of Neurology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; M.D., Columbia
Identifying genes and pathways for human nervous system disorders, (e.g., neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative diseases)

Barton Kamen, Professor of Pediatrics and Pharmacology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; M.D., Ph.D., Case Western
Folate homeostasis

Alexander Kusnecov, Associate Professor of Psychology, SAS; Ph.D., Newcastle (Australia)
Neurobiological and behavioral effects of cytokines from the brain and immune system

John K. Li, Professor of Biomedical Engineering, SE; Ph.D., Pennsylvania
Ischemia and oxygenation; neural control of circulation; stress and biofeedback; biomedical modeling and devices

Michael Matise, Associate Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., Pittsburgh
Molecular mechanisms of vertebrate nervous system development

John P. McGann, Assistant Professor of Psychology, SAS; Ph.D., Yale
Neuroscience of smell; optical imaging; cellular/systems/behavioral

Randall D. McKinnon, Associate Professor of Surgery, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., McMaster (Canada)
Growth factors and glia

Evangelia Micheli-Tzanakou, Professor of Biomedical Engineering, SE; Ph.D., Syracuse
Computational intelligence; neurosciences and electronic neuronal implants

James H. Millonig, Assistant Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, UMDNJ-RWJMS/CABM; Ph.D., Princeton 
Use of human and mouse genetics to understand the biological basis of human disorders such as autism, neural tube defects (NTDs), cataracts, and congenital heart defects (CHDs)

Mary Maral Mouradian, William Dow Lovett Professor of Neurology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; M.D., American (Beirut)
Molecular pathogenesis and therapeutic interventions in Parkinson's disease

Judith A. Neubauer, Associate Professor of Medicine, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., Rutgers
Neurobiology of respiratory control: neuronal responses to hypoxia and CO₂

Richard S. Nowakowski, Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., Harvard
Cell cycle in developing CNS and during adult neurogenesis; genome-wide analysis of neurostem cells

Timothy Otto, Associate Professor of Psychology, SAS; Ph.D., New Hampshire
Neurobiology of memory; synaptic plasticity; rodent olfactory learning

Richard W. Padgett, Professor of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, SAS; Ph.D., North Carolina (Chapel Hill)
TGFbeta signaling in Drosophila and C. elegans; microRNAs; developmental biology

Charles H. Page, Professor of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, SAS; Ph.D., Illinois
Cellular neurophysiology and motor control

Thomas V. Papathomas, Professor of Biomedical Engineering, SE; Ph.D., Columbia
Mechanisms and models for stereo, motion, and texture perception

Andre Pietrzykowski, Assistant Professor of Animal Sciences, SEBS; Ph.D., Medical Center of Postgraduate Education (Warsaw)
Molecular neuroendocrinology of environmental adaptation and addiction

John E. Pintar, Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., Oregon
Role of insulin growth factor family during embryogenesis; development biology of the pituitary gland

Mark R. Plummer, Professor of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, SAS; Ph.D., Stanford
Synaptic plasticity in the developing nervous system

Jamshid Rabii, Professor of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, SAS; Ph.D., California (San Francisco)
Neuroendocrine regulation of prolactin, LH, and other pituitary hormones

Mladen-Roko Rasin, Assistant Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., Zagreb (Croatia)
Molecular and cellular mechanisms of neocortical circuit formation

Christopher Rongo, Associate Professor of Genetics, SAS; Ph.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Formation and plasticity of synapses in the central nervous system

Dipak Sarkar, Professor of Animal Sciences, SEBS; Ph.D., Oxford
Molecular mechanisms of neuroendocrine cell growth and differentiation

Melitta Schachner, Professor of Cell Biology and Neuroscience, SAS; Ph.D., Max Planck Institute for Biochemistry Munich (Germany)
Formation of appropriate connections among nerve cells

Federico Sesti, Associate Professor of Physiology and Biophysics, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., Genova (Italy)
Role of K+ channels in basic neuronal function and disease

Tetsuo Shimamura, Professor of Pathology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; M.D., Ph.D., Yokohama (Japan)
Renal structure and function

Tracey Shors, Professor of Psychology, SAS; Ph.D., Southern California 
Neurogenesis and sex differences in learning and memory

Gleb Shumyatsky, Assistant Professor of Genetics, SAS; Ph.D., Moscow (Russia)
Molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying memory of fear

Steven M. Silverstein, Professor of Psychiatry, UMDNJ-RWJMS/GSAPP; Ph.D., SUNY (Buffalo)
Cognitive neuroscience of visual processing and memory in schizophrenia

Arabinda K. Sinha, Associate Professor of Physiology and Biophysics,
UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., California (San Francisco)
Metabolic alterations between sleep and wakefulness

Patricia Sonsalla, Professor of Neurology, UMDNJ-RWJMS/EOHSI; Ph.D., Utah
Neurodegeneration; Parkinson's disease; neuropharmacology of dopamine neurons

Judith M. Stern, Professor of Psychology, SAS; Ph.D., Rutgers
Sexual and maternal behaviors in animals and women

Mona Thiruchelvam, Assistant Professor, EOHSI, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., Rochester
Neurodegeneration; Parkinson's disease; developmental basis for adult disease

Chih-Cheng Tsai, Assistant Professor of Physiology and Biophysics, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D. SUNY (Stony Brook) 
Neurodegenerative diseases; nuclear receptor signaling

David Vicario, Associate Professor of Psychology, SAS; Ph.D., Rockefeller
Auditory and motor physiology; vocal learning; songbirds; neuroethology

William G. Wadsworth, Professor of Pathology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., Missouri
Extracellular matrix and axonal guidance in C. elegans

George Wagner, Professor of Psychology, SAS; Ph.D., Chicago
Neurochemical mechanisms underlying behavior

Mark O. West, Professor of Psychology, SAS; Ph.D., Wake Forest School of Medicine
Electrophysiological analysis of basal ganglia and limbic circuits in the rat during cocaine self-administration and habit formation

Mengqing Xiang, Professor of Pediatrics, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., Texas
Molecular mechanisms of sensorineural and CNS development

Wise Young, Professor of Cell Biology, Developmental Biology, and Neurobiology, SAS; Ph.D., Iowa; M.D., Stanford
Spinal cord nerve regeneration

Gail Zeevalk, Associate Professor of Neurology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., CUNY
Mechanisms of neuronal damage in models of neurodegenerative disease

James Q. Zheng, Associate Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D.,Tsinghua (China)
Molecular/cellular mechanisms underlying the formation of neuronal circuitry

Renping Zhou, Professor of Chemical Biology, EMSP; Ph.D., California (Berkeley)
Development of the brain: function of growth factors and their receptors

Associate Members of the Graduate Faculty

Juan P. Advis, Associate Professor of Animal Sciences, SEBS; Ph.D., Texas; D.V.M., Austral (Chile)
Neuroendocrinology of reproduction

Janet Alder, Assistant Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology; UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., Columbia
Role of trophic factors in neuronal development and psychiatric disorders

David Crockett, Assistant Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology; UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., CUNY
Somatosensory systems development; spinal cord injury; neurotrophins

Alan Gelperin, Monell Chemical Senses Center; Ph.D., Pennsylvania
Olfactory information processing and learning in mice

Joseph V. Martin, Professor and Chair of Biology; FAS-C; Ph.D., Southern California
Mechanisms of action of hypnotic drugs

William M. Saidel, Associate Professor of Zoology; FAS-C; Ph.D., Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Vision in fishes and the evolution of vision

Michael V.K. Sukhdeo, Professor of Ecology, Evolution, and Natural Resources, SEBS; Ph.D., McGill (Canada)
Behavioral ecology of parasitic helminths in the host environment

Smita Thakker-Varia, Associate Professor of Neuroscience and Cell Biology, UMDNJ-RWJMS; Ph.D., Kansas
Growth factors and neuropeptides in brain injury and mental disorders