Sharp Research Laboratory

• Vicki Brower, Ph.D.
  Hao Chen, Ph.D.
  Yitong Fu, Ph.D.
  Kathleen McAllen, Ph.D.
  Nahid Shahabi, Ph.D.
  Wenyuan Zhao, Ph.D.
  Burt Sharp, M.D.
  

Research Interests

• * The neurobiological basis of nicotine action on behavior
• The expression and function of delta opioid receptors by immune cells *
  

Research Technologies

• *In vivo microdialysis and electrochemistry with HPLC
  
• * Chronic drug self-administration in operant chambers
  
• * RT-PCR analysis of gene expression
  
• * Microchip Arrays
  
• *In situ hybridization and immunocytochemistry of CNS gene/protein expression
  
• * Western immunoblotting of phosphorylated proteins
  
• * FACS detection of cell surface proteins
  
  

Public Resources

• * Oliz, a suite of Perl scripts that assist in the design of microarrays using 50mer oligonucleotides from the 3’ region

Recent Publications

Fu Y, Matta SG, Gao W, Brower V and Sharp BM. Systemic nicotine stimulates dopamine release in the nucleus accumbens: re-evaluation of the role of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors in the ventral tegmental area. J. Pharm. Exp. Ther. 2000; 294:458-465.

Li M, Kane JK, Parker SL, Matta SG, and Sharp BM. Nicotine administration enhances NPY expression in the rat hypothalamus. Brain Research, 2000, 867:157-164.

Fu Y, Matta SG, Gao W and Sharp BM. Local alpha-bungarotoxin-sensitive nicotinic receptors in the nucleus accumbens modulate nicotine-stimulated dopamine secretion in vivo. Neuroscience 2000, 101(2):369-375.

Shahabi, NA, McAllen K, Matta SG and Sharp BM. Expression of delta opioid receptors by splenocytes from SEB-treated mice and effects on phosphorylation of MAP kinase. Cellular Immunol. 2000, 205(2):84-93.

Sharp B, Li MD, Matta SG, McAllen K and Shahabi NA. Expression of delta opioid receptors and transcripts by splenic T-cells. Annals of the New York Academy of Science 2000, 917:764-770.

Sharp, BM, McAllen K, Gekker G, Shahabi NA and Peterson PK. Immunofluorescence detection of delta opioid receptors (DOR) on human peripheral blood CD4+ T-cells and DOR-dependent suppression of HIV-1 expression. J. Immunol. 2001, 167:1097-1102.

Fu Y, Matta SG, Brower VG and Sharp BM. Norepinephrine secretion in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus of rats during unlimited access to self-administered nicotine: an in vivo microdialysis study. J. Neuroscience 2001, 21(22):8979-8989.

Brower, VG, Fu Y, Matta SG and Sharp BM. Rat strain differences in nicotine self-administration using an unlimited access paradigm. Brain Research 2002, 930(1-2):12-20.