L. Keith Henry, Ph.D.
Project: Substrate and Antagonist Molecular Determinants in the Dopamine and Serotonin Transporters.
Mentor: L. Keith Henry, Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Department of Biomedical Sciences
Research Project: The project will focus on identification and characterization of molecular determinants that discriminate substrates from antagonists in the serotonin and dopamine transporters. We have identified that substrate selectivity for neurotransmitters and drugs of abuse such as MDMA (ecstasy) occur through divergent interactions. Understanding these key differences could lead to unique pharmacological approaches to selectively block the actions of drugs of abuse. This project is ideal for an undergraduate and will focus on generating site-directed mutants in amino acids attributed to outer gate function as well and the phosphorylation sites located on the N-terminus. The functional readouts will include expression and transport levels using radiolabeled and fluorescent transport assays along with Western Blot techniques.
Techniques: The SURF student will learn basic and advanced principles of pharmacology and small molecule interactions with targets using biochemical and computational approaches. These will include (but not limited to) transport assays, binding assays, Wester Blots, chemical crosslinking, molecular mutagenesis and cloning, and affinity purification.
Student Independence: The SURF student will be given a project that is independent of other students but will be provided guidance and mentorship appropriate for their experience and background with the understanding they are expected to move toward independence on their project. Dr. Henry will oversee this process and assess regularly via questions and monitoring.
