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Synaptic Physiology Section
Jeffrey S. Diamond, Ph.D., Senior Investigator
Dr. Diamond received his B.S. from Duke University in 1989 and his Ph.D. from
the University of California, San Francisco in 1994, where he studied synaptic
excitation of retinal ganglion cells with David Copenhagen. During a
postdoctoral fellowship with Craig Jahr at the Vollum Institute, he
investigated the effects of glutamate transporters on excitatory synaptic
transmission in the hippocampus. Dr. Diamond joined NINDS as an investigator in
1999, was awarded the Presidential Early Career Award in Science and
Engineering in 2000 and was promoted to senior investigator in 2007. His
laboratory explores the dynamics and modulation of transmitter diffusion and
receptor activation at excitatory synapses in the mammalian CNS.
Staff:
- Dr. Will Grimes, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow, 301-435-2750 williamgrimes@ninds.nih.gov
- Dr. Nicholas Oesch, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow, 301-594-1086 oeschn@ninds.nih.gov
- Dr. Annalisa Scimemi, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow, 301-402-5446 scimemia@ninds.nih.gov
- Dr. Christopher Thomas, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow, 301-496-8252 thomaschr@ninds.nih.gov
- Ms. Hua Tian, B.S., Biologist tianh@ninds.nih.gov
- Dr. Jun Zhang, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Fellow, 301-496-8252 zhangju@ninds.nih.gov
Research Interests:
Excitatory, glutamatergic synapses mediate much of the interneuronal communication in the CNS. We have learned a great deal about the structural and molecular organization of these synapses, but many important physiological questions remain unresolved. How do the morphological characteristics of the synaptic cleft and the biophysical properties of neurotransmitter receptors influence synaptic signaling? How do transporters, which bind free glutamate and remove it from the extracellular space, limit the extent to which transmitter diffuses from its point of release? Can glutamate diffuse out of the cleft to activate receptors in neighboring synapses and, if so, how does this "spillover" degrade or enhance the information capacity of a neuronal network? How are these processes developmentally regulated? In the hippocampus, answers to these questions may give insight into the mechanisms by which learning and memory are implemented at the synaptic level. In the retina, they may help explain how visual information is transformed into a neural code and how the visual system's exquisite spatial acuity is preserved. We approach these questions experimentally using electrophysiological methods, including whole-cell recordings and excised patches, in hippocampal and retinal slice preparations.
Download data acquisition software used in the laboratory.
Selected Publications:
- Chavez, AE and Diamond, JS (2008) Diverse mechanisms underlie glycinergic feedback transmission onto rod bipolar cells in rat retina, J. Neurosci. 28, 7919-7928. Full Text/Abstract
- Singer, JH and Diamond, JS (2006) Vesicle depletion and synaptic depression at a mammalian ribbon synapse, J. Neurophysiol. 95, 3191-3198. Full Text/Abstract
- Chavez, AE, Singer, JH and Diamond, JS (2006) Fast neurotransmitter release triggered by Ca influx through AMPA-type glutamate receptors, Nature 443, 705-708. Full Text/Abstract
- Zhang, J and Diamond, JS (2006) Distinct perisynaptic and synaptic localization of NMDA and AMPA receptors on ganglion cells in rat retina, J. Comp. Neurol. 498, 810-820. Full Text/Abstract
- Diamond, JS (2005) Deriving the glutamate clearance time course from transporter currents in CA1 hippocampal astrocytes: transmitter uptake gets faster during development, J. Neurosci. 25, 2906-2916. Full Text/Abstract
- Singer, JH, Lassova, L, Vardi, N, and Diamond, JS (2004) Coordinated multivesicular release at a mammalian ribbon synapse, Nature Neurosci. 7, 826-833. Full Text/Abstract
- Mathews, CG and Diamond, JS (2003) Neuronal glutamate uptake contributes to GABA synthesis and inhibitory synaptic strength, J. Neurosci. 23, 2040-2048. Full Text/Abstract
All Selected Publications
Contact Information:
Dr. Jeffrey S. Diamond
Synaptic Physiology Section, NINDS
Porter Neuroscience Research Center
Building 35, Room 3C-1000
35 Convent Drive, MSC 3701
Bethesda, MD 20892-3701
Telephone: 301-435-1896 office,
301-435-1897 laboratory,
301-435-1895 fax
Email: diamondj@ninds.nih.gov
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