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Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Molecular and Cellular Neuroscience

Sex Differences In Estradiol Signaling In The Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia Gutatta) Auditory Cortex, Amanda Krentzel Nov 2017

Sex Differences In Estradiol Signaling In The Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia Gutatta) Auditory Cortex, Amanda Krentzel

Doctoral Dissertations

Although several sex differences have been described in brain structure, function, and development, sex as a biological factor is underrepresented in neuroscience studies. In the mammalian brain, there are sex differences in the mechanism of rapid estradiol actions on neuronal physiology. In the songbird, the brain is a major source of estradiol production, and estradiol rapidly modulates auditory responsiveness through dynamic changes and an unknown receptor mechanism. I set out to determine if there are sex differences in rapid estradiol modulation of auditory cortical activity, as has been shown in other systems. I tested this hypothesis through three aims: 1) …


Using The Suprachiasmatic Nucleus As A Model System To Assess Tolerance And Withdrawal To Alcohol, Jonathan Houghton Lindsay Aug 2017

Using The Suprachiasmatic Nucleus As A Model System To Assess Tolerance And Withdrawal To Alcohol, Jonathan Houghton Lindsay

Doctoral Dissertations

Alcohol abuse induces many disorders including depression, metabolic syndrome, and sleep disturbances. The strong link between alcohol abuse and sleep problems, along with the close connection between sleep and circadian rhythms, led us to investigate ethanol’s effects on the circadian clock. Previous work has shown that acute ethanol blocks photic phase shifts in vivo and glutamatergic phase shifts in vitro. However, neural systems become tolerant to ethanol across different timeframes. Despite both ethanol tolerance and ethanol withdrawal syndrome being listed as criteria for developing alcohol use disorders, little is known about how ethanol tolerance and withdrawal induced hyperexcitability develop and …