http://www.research.yerkes.emory.edu/Buffalo/
Faculty Bio
Education
Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA B.A. 1988-1992 Philosophy, Psychobiology
St. Hilda’s College, Oxford University, Oxford, U.K. 1990-1991 Philosophy, Physiology
University of California, San Diego, CA M.A., Ph.D. 1993-1998 Philosophy, Neuroscience
Laboratory of Neuropsychology, NIMH, NIH 1998-2005 Postdoctoral training
The long-range goal of our research is to contribute to a better understanding of the neuronal mechanisms involved in the establishment and maintenance of memory. Previous studies have identified a system of structures in the medial temporal lobe that is critical for declarative memory, the ability for the conscious recollection of facts and events. This system of structures includes the hippocampus and the cortex that surrounds the hippocampus. These are the structures that are affected first in Alzheimer’s disease, and previous studies have demonstrated that lesions of these structures produce profound memory deficits. It is unclear, however, how these structures work together during memory formation and retrieval. In our research, we are working to identify the neuronal signals that mediate cooperation between the hippocampus and the surrounding cortex by recording simultaneously from multiple neurons across these regions in awake, behaving monkeys that have been trained to perform various types of visual memory tasks. This research provides an opportunity to investigate directly neuronal cooperation across medial temporal lobe regions as well as possible functional distinctions between these regions. As an outcome of these studies, it is expected that we will have a better understanding of how medial temporal lobe circuits support memory formation. This understanding has the potential to make way for new therapies aimed at reducing or preventing memory loss that results from medial temporal lobe disease.
Publications:
Please click here.