Keywords

Electrophysiology; Neuropharmacology; Neurophysiology

Research interests

The research focus is the modulation of ion channels by G protein-coupled receptors and the functional consequences thereof. This is done in close collaboration with Dr. Stefan Böhm. In addition, I also investigate the mechanistic basis of neurotransmitter transporter function and its modulation in collaboration with the groups of Dr. Harald Sitte & Dr. Walter Sandtner.

Techniques, methods & infrastructure

The methods that are established in the lab include:

• perforated patch clamp
• confocal microscopy
• Ca2+ imaging
• TIRF microscopy
• FRET microscopy

Selected publications

1. Gafar, H. et al., 2016. Membrane coordination of receptors and channels mediating the inhibition of neuronal ion currents by ADP. Purinergic Signalling, 12(3), pp.497-507. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11302-016-9516-5.
2. Burtscher, V. et al., 2014. Spectrum of Cav1.4 dysfunction in congenital stationary night blindness type 2. Biochimica et Biophysica Acta (BBA) - Biomembranes, 1838(8), pp.2053-2065. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.bbamem.2014.04.023.
3. Buchmayer, F. et al., 2013. Amphetamine actions at the serotonin transporter rely on the availability of phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 110(28), pp.11642-11647. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1220552110.
4. Schicker, K. et al., 2011. Unifying Concept of Serotonin Transporter-associated Currents. Journal of Biological Chemistry, 287(1), pp.438-445. Available at: http://dx.doi.org/10.1074/jbc.M111.304261.