JULY 2025: COWELL LAB PUBLICATION – Work from a recent collaboration between the Cowell lab and the lab of Dr. Karen Gamble (Professor, Psychiatry & Behavioral Neurobiology) was published in the journal npj Biological Timing and Sleep. These studies demonstrate that dopaminergic neurons of the substantia nigra pars reticulata, cells vulnerable to loss in Parkinson Disease, show daily rhythms in circadian gene expression and electrophysiological properties. Furthermore, the data show that disruption of this clock using mice deficient in expression of BMAL1, a protein required for maintaining circadian rhythmicity, can reduce bursting properties of these neurons and influence motivated behaviors. This work sets the stage for exploring the potential links between circadian disruption and neuronal vulnerability in Parkinson Disease.
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