Nigel Bamford, MD

 Submitted The Bamford lab integrates fiber photometry, cyclic voltammetry, and electrophysiology in awake and behaving mice, with similar in vitro techniques, to determine how alterations in dopamine availability modify the activity of neurons within the striatum. We have demonstrated that dopamine, GABA, and acetylcholine provide complex filtering of cortical information entering the striatum, and alterations in their availability can produce the signs and symptoms of many diseases. In animal models of dopamine deficiency, striatal filtering is impaired because residual dopamine more broadly inhibits the release of glutamate from cortical projections. Dopamine excess causes chronic yet reversible depression in corticostriatal neurotransmission, a mechanism that extends to locomotor sensitization and drug intake escalation, both hallmarks of addiction. Huntington's mutation also produces biphasic, age-dependent alterations in glutamate availability, which alter corticostriatal pathway activation. Our efforts to understand striatal function have recently been enhanced by the development of new genetic mouse models and optical techniques that enable the focused stimulation of neurons in specific neuronal populations or brain regions. These techniques offer a deeper understanding of the mechanisms by which dopamine influences striatal activity. Because dopamine is essential for emotion, motivation, learning, memory, and motor control, it is a prime candidate for mediating conscious behavior.

animal models ;  behavioral testing ;  electrophysiology ;  patch clamping ;  signal processing ;  two-photon imaging  

basal ganglia ;  circuits ;  motor control ;  neurological disorders ;  plasticity ;  reward  

Nigel S. Bamford studied electrical engineering and medicine at the University of Utah. He trained in pediatrics, neurology, and child neurology at the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons and the Neurological Institute of New York. He started his career as a physician-scientist at the University of Washington in Seattle and moved to Yale in 2015 as the Section Chief of Pediatric Neurology. Bamford is the Director of the Pediatric Neurology Movement Disorders Program and Laboratory, caring for children with various neurological conditions. His wife, Lisa, is a dentist, and his son Ian is an analyst in corporate finance.