Jeffrey Blaustein

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Jeffrey Blaustein is a retired professor and the former head of the Behavioral Neuroscience Division at the University of Massachusetts Amherst (UMass Amherst), known for his research in behavioral neuroendocrinology. [1] [2] Before the Behavioral Neuroscience Division, he had served at UMass Amherst as the founding director of the Center for Neuroendocrine Studies [3] and as the head of the Biopsychology department. [4] He was named a National Institute of Mental Health Senior Scientist in 1997 [5] and an American Association for the Advancement of Science fellow in 2014. [6] [7] He has served as the president of the Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology [8] and as the editor-in-chief of the journal Endocrinology. [9]

Blaustein has published several highly cited papers in journals such as Endocrinology, Science, Brain Research, Physiology & Behavior, and the American Journal of Physiology. [10] His research has focused on the cellular processes behind how brain function and behavior are modified by steroid hormones, [1] and his papers have covered topics such sex differences in the brain, [11] [12] the effects of hormones on rodent brains and behavior, [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] and the effects of steroid hormones on social behavior. [18]

Blaustein lives in Amherst, Massachusetts, where he has served as an elected Town Meeting representative. [19]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Estrogen</span> Primary female sex hormone

Estrogen is a category of sex hormone responsible for the development and regulation of the female reproductive system and secondary sex characteristics. There are three major endogenous estrogens that have estrogenic hormonal activity: estrone (E1), estradiol (E2), and estriol (E3). Estradiol, an estrane, is the most potent and prevalent. Another estrogen called estetrol (E4) is produced only during pregnancy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hypothalamus</span> Area of the brain below the thalamus

The hypothalamus is a small part of the brain that contains a number of nuclei with a variety of functions. One of the most important functions is to link the nervous system to the endocrine system via the pituitary gland. The hypothalamus is located below the thalamus and is part of the limbic system. It forms the ventral part of the diencephalon. All vertebrate brains contain a hypothalamus. In humans, it is the size of an almond.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Progesterone</span> Sex hormone

Progesterone (P4) is an endogenous steroid and progestogen sex hormone involved in the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, and embryogenesis of humans and other species. It belongs to a group of steroid hormones called the progestogens and is the major progestogen in the body. Progesterone has a variety of important functions in the body. It is also a crucial metabolic intermediate in the production of other endogenous steroids, including the sex hormones and the corticosteroids, and plays an important role in brain function as a neurosteroid.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steroid hormone</span> Substance with biological function

A steroid hormone is a steroid that acts as a hormone. Steroid hormones can be grouped into two classes: corticosteroids and sex steroids. Within those two classes are five types according to the receptors to which they bind: glucocorticoids and mineralocorticoids and androgens, estrogens, and progestogens. Vitamin D derivatives are a sixth closely related hormone system with homologous receptors. They have some of the characteristics of true steroids as receptor ligands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neurosteroid</span> Compounds that affect neuronal excitability through modulation of specific ionotropic receptors

Neurosteroids, also known as neuroactive steroids, are endogenous or exogenous steroids that rapidly alter neuronal excitability through interaction with ligand-gated ion channels and other cell surface receptors. The term neurosteroid was coined by the French physiologist Étienne-Émile Baulieu and refers to steroids synthesized in the brain. The term, neuroactive steroid refers to steroids that can be synthesized in the brain, or are synthesized by an endocrine gland, that then reach the brain through the bloodstream and have effects on brain function. The term neuroactive steroids was first coined in 1992 by Steven Paul and Robert Purdy. In addition to their actions on neuronal membrane receptors, some of these steroids may also exert effects on gene expression via nuclear steroid hormone receptors. Neurosteroids have a wide range of potential clinical applications from sedation to treatment of epilepsy and traumatic brain injury. Ganaxolone, a synthetic analog of the endogenous neurosteroid allopregnanolone, is under investigation for the treatment of epilepsy.

Neuroendocrinology is the branch of biology which studies the interaction between the nervous system and the endocrine system; i.e. how the brain regulates the hormonal activity in the body. The nervous and endocrine systems often act together in a process called neuroendocrine integration, to regulate the physiological processes of the human body. Neuroendocrinology arose from the recognition that the brain, especially the hypothalamus, controls secretion of pituitary gland hormones, and has subsequently expanded to investigate numerous interconnections of the endocrine and nervous systems.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus</span> Nucleus of the hypothalamus

The ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus is a nucleus of the hypothalamus. In 2007, Kurrasch et al. found that the ventromedial hypothalamus is a distinct morphological nucleus involved in terminating hunger, fear, thermoregulation, and sexual activity. This nuclear region is involved in the recognition of the feeling of fullness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kathie L. Olsen</span> American neuroscientist

Kathie L. Olsen is an American neuroscientist who is noted for her work in scientific policy. Between August 2005 and January 2009, she was the Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer of the National Science Foundation, a United States government agency. She was also NASA's Chief Scientist from May 24, 1999 to April 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marc Breedlove</span>

Stephen Marc Breedlove is the Barnett Rosenberg professor of Neuroscience at Michigan State University in East Lansing, Michigan. He was born and raised in the Ozarks of southwestern Missouri. After graduating from Central High School in 1972, he earned a bachelor's degree in Psychology from Yale University in 1976, and a Ph.D. in psychology from UCLA in 1982. He was a professor of psychology at the University of California, Berkeley from 1982 to 2003, moving to Michigan State in 2001. He works in the fields of Behavioral Neuroscience and Neuroendocrinology. He is a member of the Society for Neuroscience and the Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology, and a fellow of the Association for Psychological Science (APS) and the Biological Sciences section of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tetrahydrodeoxycorticosterone</span> Chemical compound

Tetrahydrodeoxycorticosterone, also referred to as allotetrahydrocorticosterone, is an endogenous neurosteroid. It is synthesized from the adrenal hormone deoxycorticosterone by the action of two enzymes, 5α-reductase type I and 3α-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase. THDOC is a potent positive allosteric modulator of the GABAA receptor, and has sedative, anxiolytic and anticonvulsant effects. Changes in the normal levels of this steroid particularly during pregnancy and menstruation may be involved in some types of epilepsy and premenstrual syndrome, as well as stress, anxiety and depression.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Central nucleus of the amygdala</span> Nucleus within the amygdala

The central nucleus of the amygdala is a nucleus within the amygdala. It "serves as the major output nucleus of the amygdala and participates in receiving and processing pain information."

Membrane progesterone receptors (mPRs) are a group of cell surface receptors and membrane steroid receptors belonging to the progestin and adipoQ receptor (PAQR) family which bind the endogenous progestogen and neurosteroid progesterone, as well as the neurosteroid allopregnanolone. Unlike the progesterone receptor (PR), a nuclear receptor which mediates its effects via genomic mechanisms, mPRs are cell surface receptors which rapidly alter cell signaling via modulation of intracellular signaling cascades. The mPRs mediate important physiological functions in male and female reproductive tracts, liver, neuroendocrine tissues, and the immune system as well as in breast and ovarian cancer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Membrane estrogen receptor</span>

Membrane estrogen receptors (mERs) are a group of receptors which bind estrogen. Unlike nuclear estrogen receptors, which mediate their effects via slower genomic mechanisms, mERs are cell surface receptors that rapidly alter cell signaling via modulation of intracellular signaling cascades.

Astrid Linthorst is a professor of neuroscience at the School of Clinical Sciences at the University of Bristol, UK. Specializing in the neurochemistry and neuroendocrinology of stress and behavior, she heads a research group on the mechanisms that support coping with stress in the brain. She is also chair of the Scientific Programme Committee of the ECNP Congress and a member of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP) Executive Committee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frances Champagne</span> Psychologist

Frances A. Champagne is a Canadian psychologist and University Professor of Psychology at the University of Texas at Austin known for her research in the fields of molecular neuroscience, maternal behavior, and epigenetics. Research in the Champagne lab explores the developmental plasticity that occurs in response to environmental experiences. She is known for her work on the epigenetic transmission of maternal behavior. Frances Champagne's research has revealed how natural variations in maternal behavior can shape the behavioral development of offspring through epigenetic changes in gene expression in a brain region specific manner. She won the NIH Director's New Innovator Award in 2007 and the Frank A. Beach Young Investigator Award in Behavioral Neuroendocrinology in 2009. She has been described as the "bee's knees of neuroscience". She serves on the Committee on Fostering Healthy Mental, Emotional, and Behavioral Development Among Children and Youth in the United States.

Catherine S. Woolley is an American neuroendocrinologist. Woolley holds the William Deering Chair in Biological Sciences in the Department of Neurobiology, Weinberg College of Arts & Sciences, at Northwestern University. She is also a member of the Women's Health Research Institute in the Feinberg School of Medicine at Northwestern University.

Elizabeth Adkins-Regan is an American comparative behavioral neuroendocrinologist best known for her research on the hormonal and neural mechanisms of reproductive behavior and sexual differentiation in birds. She is currently a professor emeritus in the Department of Psychology and the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior at Cornell University.

Rae Silver is a Canadian behavioral neuroendocrinologist and neuroscientist best known for her research on the role of the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus in generating circadian rhythms, the role of mast cells in the brain, the physiological mechanisms of parental behavior in ring doves. She is currently the Helene L. and Mark N. Kaplan Professor of Natural & Physical Sciences and is currently the Chair of the Neuroscience Program and Professor of Psychology at Barnard College. In addition, she is jointly appointed as a Professor in the Department of Psychology at Columbia University and in the Department of Pathology and Cell Biology with the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Staci Bilbo</span> American neuroimmunologist

Staci Bilbo is an American neuroimmunologist and The Haley Family Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at Duke University. Bilbo also holds a position as a research affiliate at Massachusetts General Hospital overseeing research within the Lurie Center for Autism. As the principal investigator of the Bilbo Lab, Bilbo investigates how environmental challenges during the perinatal period impact the immune system and further influence brain development, cognition, and affective behaviors later in life..

Liisa Ann Margaret Galea is a Canadian neuroscientist who is a professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia. She is a member of the Centre for Brain Health and Director of the Graduate Programme in Neuroscience. Her research considers the impact of hormones on brain health and behaviour.

References

  1. 1 2 "Jeffrey D. Blaustein". umass.edu. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  2. ↑ "Retirement Reception Planned for Jeffrey Blaustein". Office of News & Media Relations | UMass Amherst. Retrieved 2017-12-11.
  3. ↑ "UMass Amherst neuroscientist to receive 2012 Frank A. Beach Award from SBN". News-Medical.net. 15 October 2012. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  4. ↑ "JEFFREY D. BLAUSTEIN : CURRICULUM VITAE" (PDF). Umass.edu. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  5. ↑ "Jeffrey D. Blaustein". umass.edu. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  6. ↑ "AAAS and UMass Amherst Announce 2014 AAAS Fellows". umass.edu. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  7. ↑ "AAAS news and notes". Science. 346 (6213): 1069–1073. 2014. doi: 10.1126/science.346.6213.1069 .
  8. ↑ "Psychology professor leads his field". dailycollegian.com. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  9. ↑ "Fraud: who is responsible? : Recent cases remind us that research misconduct is a persistent threat, says a journal editor". The-scientist.com. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  10. ↑ "Jeffrey D. Blaustein - Google Scholar Citations". google.com. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
  11. ↑ "Strategies and Methods for Research on Sex Differences in Brain and Behavior" (PDF). Deepblue.lib.umich.edu. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  12. ↑ McCarthy, M. M.; Arnold, A. P.; Ball, G. F.; Blaustein, J. D.; De Vries, G. J. (2012). "Sex Differences in the Brain: The Not So Inconvenient Truth". Journal of Neuroscience. 32 (7). Jneurosci.org: 2241–2247. doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5372-11.2012. PMC   3295598 . PMID   22396398.
  13. ↑ "Conmvergent Pathways" (PDF). People.umass.edu. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  14. ↑ Blaustein, Jeffrey D.; Feder, Harvey H. (1979). "Cytoplasmic progestin-receptors in guinea pig brain: Characteristics and relationship to the induction of sexual behavior". Brain Research. 169 (3): 481–497. doi:10.1016/0006-8993(79)90398-6. PMID   571753. S2CID   27466741.
  15. ↑ Blaustein, J.; Wade, G. (1976). "Ovarian influences". Physiology & Behavior. 17 (2): 201–208. doi:10.1016/0031-9384(76)90064-0. PMID   1033580. S2CID   23300038.
  16. ↑ "Coexpression of ER with ER and Progestin Receptor Proteins in the Female Rat Forebrain: Effects of Estradiol Treatment" (PDF). Academics.wellesley.edu. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
  17. ↑ Blaustein, Jeffrey D.; Erskine, Mary S. (2002). "Feminine Sexual Behavior" (PDF). Feminine Sexual Behavior: Cellular Integration of Hormonal and Afferent Information in the Rodent Forebrain. pp. 139–214. doi:10.1016/B978-012532104-4/50004-4. ISBN   9780125321044. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 24, 2010. Retrieved December 4, 2014.
  18. ↑ Blaustein, J. D.; Olster, D. H. (1989). Gonadal Steroid Hormone Receptors and Social Behaviors. Advances in Comparative and Environmental Physiology. Vol. 3. Springer. pp. 31–104. doi:10.1007/978-3-642-73827-2_2. ISBN   978-3-642-73829-6.
  19. ↑ "Controversy surrounds evaluation of director of Amherst's Jones Library". masslive.com. 2010-07-30. Retrieved 9 December 2014.



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