Exploring the mechanisms of addiction vulnerability (and resilience) using multigenerational animal models of substance use
Neuroscience Seminar Series

Abstract:
The talk will discuss the impact of chronic paternal morphine exposure on future generations. Our findings suggest that paternal morphine causes heightened sensitivity to the reinforcing efficacy and the antinociceptive effects of of opiates, particularly in male progeny. We have also studied the molecular correlates of these effects in the brain of the next generation. I will also present data on the mechanisms potentially underlying the transmission of the morphine exposure in the paternal lineage onto the next generation. Finally, data will be presented about novel and automated ways to measure pain in rodents using high speed videography.

About the Speaker:
The once controversial idea that parental experiences, such as stress or diet, can shape the physiology and behavior of their offspring via epigenetic mechanisms has become an active area of research. Dr. Mathieu Wimmer studies the influence of drug abuse in fathers (sires) on future generations. His research program combines animal models of drug addiction and memory formation with molecular biology techniques to investigate the impact of paternal drug taking on drug-related behaviors and memory formation in progeny.

Dr. Wimmer is also interested in epigenetic remodeling events in the brain that underlie these inherited changes in behavior. Dr. Wimmer received his PhD from the University of Pennsylvania under the mentorship of Dr. Ted Abel. His postdoctoral training under the guidance of Dr. Chris Pierce at Penn focused on the transgenerational epigenetics of cocaine addiction. Dr. Wimmer’s research is funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

Contact

  Kimberly Wiersielis
  kimberly.wiersielis@psu.edu