Project Overview

The impact of drugs and alcohol on the basal ganglia and its role in drug-driven behaviors.

Faculty Sponsor

Ewa Galaj (egalaj@colgate.edu)

Department(s)

Neuroscience

Abstract

There are two main ongoing projects in the lab in which we attempt to understand the brain circuitry underlying addiction and the impact of drugs and alcohol on the brain.  
Project 1 is looking at the role of the basal ganglia in drug-related behaviors. In this project, we use different manipulations to understand which neuronal pathways are involved in drug taking or relapse.  Project 2 is looking at how the brain changes as result of adolescent alcohol exposure and how these neuroplastic changes affect reward-related learning. Students working on these projects will engage in behavioral experimentation with rats and mice, wet lab work including Western blotting and immunohistochemistry assays, data collection, data analysis and data presentation in the form of figures and charts. 

Student Qualifications

Student qualifications:
-interest in neuroscience
-students should feel comfortable with working with rats or mice
-brief statement of why you are interested in this position
-no prior research experience is needed

Number of Student Researchers

3 students

Project Length

10 weeks

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If you have questions, please contact Karyn Belanger (kgbelanger@colgate.edu).