University of Pittsburgh
School of Pharmacy
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Robert Gibbs, Ph.D.Professor of Pharmaceutical SciencesDirector, Cell Imaging CoreUniversity of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy, 1004 Salk Hall, Pittsburgh, PA 15261 e-mail: gibbsr@pitt.edu |
Research
Dr. Gibbs's laboratory is located on the 10th floor of Salk Hall where investigators are studying the ability of gonadal hormone therapy to enhance and maintain the functional status of specific neural systems in the adult and aging brain. Current studies are focusing on the effects of estradiol and testosterone on cholinergic projections to the hippocampus and cortex, the enhancement of which may help to prevent or delay the development of Alzheimer's-related dementia in postmenopausal women.
Training Opportunities
A wide variety of molecular, histochemical, and behavioral techniques are used in the laboratory to study how brain function is affected by gonadal hormones and aging. Some of the techniques currently being utilized include quantitative RT-PCR, quantitative in situ hybridization histochemistry, immunocytochemistry, in vivo microdialysis, enzyme assays, uptake assays, and measures of learning and memory. Students are encouraged to acquaint themselves with all of the techniques being used in the laboratory. Opportunities for additional predoctoral and postdoctoral training in the Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and in conjunction with the Center for Reproductive Physiology are also available.
Cell Imaging Core
The cell imaging core provides technical support and training in the use of modern quantitative histochemical techniques. Core facilities consist of a dedicated research laboratory, cryostat, microtomes, and a high quality photomicroscope equipped with fluorescence, digital imaging, and computer aided image analysis. Some of the techniques currently supported by the core include digital imaging, quantitative in situ hybridization, immunocytochemistry, autoradiography, TUNEL, as well as a variety of morphometric and stereological analyses. Core facilities are located on the 10th floor of Salk Hall adjacent to Dr. Gibbs's laboratory.
Recent Publications
Hammond, R., Mauk, R., Ninaci, D., Nelson, D., and Gibbs, R.B. (2009) Chronic treatment with estrogen receptor agonists restores acquisition of a spatial memory task in young ovariectomized rats. Horm. & Behav., 56: 309-314.
Gibbs, R.B., Mauk, R., Nelson, D., Johnson, D.A. (2009) Donepezil treatment restores the ability of estradiol to enhance cognitive performance in aged rats: Evidence for the cholinergic basis of the critical period hypothesis. Horm. & Behav., 56: 73-83. NIHMS123055, Publ.ID: YHBEH2819
Fitz, N., Gibbs, R.B., and Johnson, D. (2008) Selective Lesions of Septal Cholinergic Neurons in Rats Impairs Acquisition of a Delayed Matching to Position T-maze Task by Delaying the Shift from a Response to a Place Strategy, Brain Res. Bull., 77: 356-360.
Ramaswamy, S., Guerriero, K.A., Gibbs, R.B., Plant, T.M. (2008) Interactions between kisspeptin and GnRH Neurons in the mediobasal hypothalamus of the male rhesus monkey (Macaca mulatta) as revealed by double immunofluorescence and confocal microscopy. Endocrinology, 149 (9): 4387-95.
Gibbs, R.B. and Johnson, D.A. (2008) Sex specific effects of gonadectomy and hormone treatment on acquisition of a 12-arm radial maze task by Sprague-Dawley rats. Endocrinology, 149(6): 3176-3183, PMC2408814.
Gibbs, R.B. (2007) Estradiol enhances DMP acquisition via a mechanism not mediated by turning strategy, but which requires basal forebrain cholinergic projections. Horm. & Behav., 52: 352-359, NIHMS 30086.
Gibbs, R.B. and Johnson, D.A. (2007) Cholinergic lesions produce task-selective effects on delayed matching to position and configural association learning related to response pattern and strategy. Neurobiol. Learning and Memory, 88: 19-32, PMC1991294.
Complete
Publication List
Other sites of interest:
University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy
PhD Program in Pharmaceutical Sciences