Bio
The key focus of our lab is to precisely define the role of dopamine neurotransmission in behavior; and to use this information to address how physiological processes that control this transmitter may alter behavior. The main emphasis of our research is motivated behavior to which dopamine appears to be intimately linked. A particular interest is drug abuse - we are studying how substances of abuse alter the dopamine system, and in turn impact motivated behavior. One of the main tools of the lab is fast-scan cyclic voltammetry. This is a rapid electrochemical technique that can detect dopamine several times a second and chemcially resolve it from other electroactive species. This technique has been particularly useful for elucidating the precise temporal relationship between released dopamine and behavior (e.g., Phillips et al, 2003), as well as probing the dynamics of the system (e.g., Montague et al, 2004).
http://faculty.washington.edu/pemp/
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