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Transforming the understanding and treatment of mental illness through research DIVISION OF INTRAMURAL RESEARCH PROGRAMS

Staff Scientists and Clinicians Adam Messinger, Ph.D.   Dr. Adam Messinger is a Staff Scientist in the Section on Neurocircuitry, Laboratory of Brain and Cognition, NIMH. He received a Bachelor's degree and Ph.D. in physics, with a specialization in biophysics, from Reed College and the University of California at San Diego, respectively. Dr. Messinger conducted his doctoral research on learning and plasticity in higher visual cortex at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies, where he was a Fellow in the Sloan Center for Theoretical Neuroscience. In 2002, he joined the NIMH's Laboratory of Systems Neuroscience where he conducted postdoctoral research on the role of frontal lobe neurons in executive processing. Dr. Messinger joined the Laboratory of Brain and Cognition in 2007. He uses a combination of electrophysiology and functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to study the neuronal basis and functional anatomy of object vision. Research Interests Dr. Adam Messinger's research addresses how objects are detected and recognized, and how they become endowed with behavioral meaning. Dr. Messinger has investigated how the plasticity of individual neurons in the inferior temporal cortex underlies the learning of associations between objects and the distinct contributions that different frontal lobe neurons make to such cognitive operations as attention, memory, and motor planning. Currently, he is studying the functional anatomy involved in the processing of shape and, in particular faces, in the inferior temporal cortex. Specifically, Dr. Messinger is using a combination of microstimulation and fMRI to assess how connections between the amygdala and the inferior temporal cortex facilitate the reading of the emotional content of faces. Representative Selected Recent Publications: Messinger, A, Lebedev, M.A., Kralik, J.D., Wise, S.P.: Multi-Tasking of Attention and Memory Functions in the Primate Prefrontal Cortex. Journal of Neuroscience, 29(17): 5640-5653, 2009. Messinger, A., Squire L.R., Zola, S.M., Albright, T.D.: Neuronal Correlates of Knowledge: Stable Representations of Stimulus Associations across Variations in Behavioral Performance. Neuron, 48(2): 359-371, 2005. Lebedev, M.A., Messinger, A., Kralik, J.D., and Wise, S.P.: Representation of Attended versus Remembered Locations in Prefrontal Cortex, Public Library of Science (PLoS) Biology, 2: 1919-1935, 2004. Messinger, A., Squire, L.R., Zola, S.M., Albright, T.D.: Neuronal Representations of Stimulus Associations Develop in the Temporal Lobe During Learning. Proceedings of the National Academy of Science (PNAS) USA, 98: 12239-12244, 2001. Address: Adam Messinger Staff Scientist Laboratory of Brain and Cognition National Institute of Mental Health Bethesda, MD 20892-4415 Phone: 301 435-1566 Email Dr. Messinger Fax:   Lab Web Site: http://lbcnimh.nih.gov     Principal Investigators Scientists & Clinicians DIRP Labs and Branches DIRP Research Areas Office of the Scientific Director Site Map Participate in Research Contact Us Careers in Research What’s New Functional MRI Core Magnetic Resonance Core Magnetoencephalography Core Microarray Core Neurophysiology Imaging Facility Scientific and Statistical Computing Core Section on Instrumentation Core Transgenic Core Veterinary Medicine Resources (Staff only) Office of the Scientific Director Office of the Clinical Director Office of Fellowship Training Office of Technology Transfer Administrative Services Branch Administrative Services

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The Division of Intramural Research Programs is within the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is a part the National Institutes of Health (NIH), is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.