In addition to the eight full-time faculty in the Psychology Department, the Behavioral Neuroscience (BN) group also benefits from clinical, cognitive and social neuroscience faculty in the department, as well as faculty in allied departments who conduct research on the biological mechanisms underlying behavior. The Ohio State University has one of the largest Behavioral Neuroscience groups in the US. Several research themes in BN are currently represented at Ohio State including Behavioral Pharmacology, Psychoneuroimmunology, Neuroendocrinology, Behavioral Genetics, Learning and Memory, Sensory Neuroscience, Neural Trauma and Regeneration, and Neuroethology and Behavioral Ecology.
Behavioral Neuroscience Faculty
Laurence Coutellier
Associate Professor, Ph.D., Justus Liebig University of Giessen, Germany, 2008 (Behavioral Genetics). Role of genetic and environmental factors in the development of neural circuits regulating social and cognitive functions. Special focus on mouse models of autism and schizophrenia, prefrontal cortex-dependent memory, social anxiety, GABAergic circuits. (Joint appointment with Neuroscience) Psychology Building 53, 688-227; coutellier.8@osu.edu
Elizabeth Kirby
Role of adult neural stem and progenitor cells in hippocampal function and response to injury. Special focus on the secretome of undifferentiated endogenous stem and progenitors in the adult hippocampus and it's role in neuroprotection after injury. Hippocampal-dependent behavior and cognition. Psychology building 55; kirby.224@osu.edu
Kathryn Lenz
Associate Professor, Ph.D., Indiana University, 2009. (Psychology & Neuroscience). Understanding the mechanisms that shape brain development and lifelong behavior, with a focus on the interactions between nervous, endocrine and immune systems. Investigating how hormones and innate immune cells in the brain, such as microglia and mast cells, contribute to normal brain development and sex differences in the brain. (Joint appointment with Neuroscience) Psychology Building 45; 292.8565; lenz.56@osu.edu
Benedetta Leuner
Associate Professor, Ph.D., Rutgers University, 2005 (Biopsychology). Experience and hormone driven changes in brain structure and function. Specific interests focus on the hippocampus and medial prefrontal cortex; adult neurogenesis, dendritic spine alterations and dendritic remodeling; cognitive, emotional and social behaviors including learning, memory, attention, anxiety, reproduction and maternal care; and neuropeptide hormones, particularly oxytocin. (Joint appointment with Neuroscience) Psychology Building 51, 292-5218; leuner.1@osu.edu
Behavioral Neuroscience Emeritus Faculty
John Bruno
Professor, (Emeritus) Ph.D., Johns Hopkins University, 1980 (Biopsychology). Neurobiology of executive cognitive functions such as attention and working memory. Neurochemical mechanisms underlying cognitive dysfunctions in schizophrenia; with an emphasis on the regulation of prefrontal acetylcholine and glutamate release Development and validation of animal models of executive function deficits and the identification of novel medications that will enhance cognitive function. Neural and behavioral plasticity after damage to the developing nervous system. (Joint appointment with Neuroscience and Psychiatry) Psychology Building 57, 292-1770; bruno.1@osu.edu
Gary G. Berntson
Professor (Emeritus) Ph.D., University of Minnesota, 1971. (Psychology and Life Sciences) Brainstem functions; autonomic nervous system; cardiovascular psychophysiology; psychobiology of fear and anxiety; ontogeny and phylogeny of cognitive processes; levels of functional organization within the central nervous system. (Joint appointment with Pediatrics and Psychiatry) Psychology Building 235, 292-1749; berntson.2@osu.edu
Bennet S. Givens
Associate Professor (Emeritus), Ph.D., University of North Carolina, 1989 (Behavioral Neuroscience). Physiology and Pharmacology of cognitive processes; neural mechanisms underlying ethanol-induced cognitive deficits; electrophysiological correlates of memory and attention in rat (Joint appointment with Neuroscience) Psychology Building 55, 292-0385; givens.7@osu.edu
Gary L. Wenk
Professor (Emeritus), Ph.D., University of Cincinnati, 1980 (Neurotoxicology). Research is focused upon the consequences of chronic brain inflammation, aging and animal models of Alzheimer's disease. He has been interviewed about his work by many magazines and radio stations, including NPR, WBZ, WJR & WABC, numerous local and national television programs, including CNN, and was recently interviewed by Lucasfilm, Ltd. and Amanada Productions for a 2-hr TV documentary on the topic of cognitive enhancers. Psychology Building 47, 688-3404; wenk.6@osu.edu
Behavioral Neuroscience Joint Appointment Faculty
Herbert Newton
Professor, College of Medicine. M.D. State University of New York at Buffalo, 1984. Clinical Interests: Neuro-oncology, brain tumors, spinal cord tumors, chemotherapy, GBM, gliomas, molecular biology, neuro-sarcoidosis, brain metastases, spinal cord compression. Research Interests: Brain tumors, chemotherapy, molecular therapeutics, clinical trials.
John F. Sheridan
Professor of Oral Biology; Ph.D. Rutgers. Psychoneuroimmunology; viral immunology; cytokine and chemokine gene expression during infection (influenza, herpes simplex and coxsackie viruses); stress-induced modulation of anti-viral immune responses and viral pathogenesis; aging and the immune response to viral infection; aging and gene expression during wound healing; patterns and kinetics of gene expression for cytokines, chemokines and growth factors during cutaneous wound healing. Joint appointment in Psychology.
Joseph B. Travers
Professor of Oral Biology; Ph.D. University of Wyoming, 1979. Sensorimotor neurophysiology; neuroanatomy; neuropharmacology; brainstem function. Joint appointment in Psychology.
Susan P. Travers
Professor of Oral Biology; Ph.D. University of Wyoming, 1980. Sensory neurophysiology; gustatory information processing; taste/eating/drinking; oral tactile and thermal sensations. Joint appointment in Psychology.