Sarah M. Richardson-Burns

 

 

University of Colorado Denver           

Neuroscience Program and Department of Neurology

Box B-182                     

4200 East 9th Avenue

Denver, Colorado 80262        

Telephone: 303-393-4684 (Laboratory)

Fax: 303-393-5271                                  

Email:  sarah.richardson-burns@uchsc.edu

Laboratory website: http://www.uchsc.edu/sm/neuro/tylerlab/

                                                                                                   

Graduate Education

University of Colorado Denver, Denver, CO

Doctor of Philosophy, Neuroscience

August 1999-May 2003

 

Undergraduate Education

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI

Bachelor of Science, Biology

September 1994-May 1998

 

Professional Positions

1998-1999: Research Associate, Meador-Woodruff Laboratory, University of Michigan Mental Health Research Institute.

1997-1998: Howard Hughes Undergraduate Research Fellow, Gnegy Laboratory, University of Michigan Department of Pharmacology.

 

Awards and Honors

10/2002: Outstanding Student Researcher Award: 2002 UCD Student Research Forum

7/2002: Travel Award: American Society of Virology: 20th Annual ASV Meeting.

7/2001: Travel Award: American Society of Virology:19th Annual ASV Meeting

05/1999: Travel Grant: University of Michigan Department of Psychiatry: 54th Annual Convention for the Society of Biological Psychiatry.

12/1997: Undergraduate honor’s thesis accepted. SM Richardson, L Kantor, KE Browman, TE Robinson and ME Gnegy. The effects of Protein Kinase C inhibitors on amphetamine-mediated midbrain dopamine release and acute behavioral response in rats.

5/1997: Howard Hughes Biomedical Sciences Undergraduate Research Fellowship

9/1996: University of Michigan Undergraduate Research Opportunities (UROP) Fellowship

 

Professional Society Memberships

American Society for Virology: 2000 – present

Rocky Mountain Neuroscience Group: 2000-present

Society of Biological Psychiatry: 1998-2000

Society for Neuroscience: 1998 - present

 

Committees and Academic Service

Graduate Student Council, Vice President: 2002-2003

Neuroscience Training Program Admissions Committee, student member: 2001-2003

Graduate Student Council, Representative: 2001-2002

Neuroscience Student Journal Club, co-director: 2000-2002

 

Research Focus:

Current Research

  • 04/2000-present: Doctoral Thesis Research; Mentor/Thesis Advisor: Ken Tyler, MD; UCD Neuroscience Program, Departments of Medicine, Neurology, Microbiology, and Immunology.

o        Mechanisms of viral pathogenesis and neurovirulence in the mouse central nervous system.

o        Elucidating cellular signaling in virus-induced neuronal apoptosis in mouse primary neuronal cultures and neuroblastoma cell lines.

o        Development of novel antiviral (anti-apoptotic) strategies for treatment of severe viral infection (encephalitis).

o        Apoptosis in Human CNS Viral Infection.

o        We use immunoblot, immunocytochemistry, single-cell microscopy, digital deconvolution microscopy, histological tissue analysis, immunohistochemistry, primary cortical and hippocampal culture preparation, TUNEL, in situ hybridization, dual-quadruple label immunofluorescence, kinase assays, viral growth/plaque assays, cell culture, rtPCR, small animal surgery, RNase protection assay, and Affymetrix Gene Chip analysis.

 

Previous Research

  • 012/1999-03/2000: Graduate Student Rotation; Mentor: Dermot Cooper, PhD; UCD Department of Pharmacology.

o        Investigation of the regulation of calcium-sensitive adenylyl cyclases by cytosolic calcium entering the cell by capacitative calcium entry and/or voltage-gated calcium entry in exciteable cells.

o        We used calcium-sensitive dyes, single-cell microscopy, fluorometry, and pulse-chase immunoprecipitation.

 

  • 09/1999-12/1999: Graduate Student Rotation; Mentor: Don Gilden, MD; UCD Department of Neurology.

o        Investigation to implicate a specific antigen in multiple sclerosis (MS) by studying the interaction of abnormally expressed antibodies isolated from cerebrospinal fluid of MS patients with MS brain tissue using ELISA, immunoblot, and immunofluorescence.

 

  • 02/1998-07/1999: Research Associate; Supervisor: James Meador-Woodruff, MD; University of Michigan Mental Health Research Institute.

o        Investigation of the biological basis of schizophrenia focusing on abnormalities in neurotransmitter receptor transcript and protein expression in the brains of schizophrenics and primates treated with neuroleptics.

o        We used in situ hybridization, receptor binding assays, receptor cloning, PCR, site-directed mutagenesis, DNA sequencing, RNase protection assay, and northern, western, and southern blot analyses.

·         05/1997-12/1997. Undergraduate Honor’s Thesis Research; Mentor: Margaret Gnegy, PhD; University of Michigan Department of Pharmacology.

o        Investigation of the effects of psychostimulants on midbrain dopamine signal transduction focusing on the effects of protein kinase C inhibitors on amphetamine-mediated dopamine release from neurons, synaptosomes, and rat striatal tissue.

o        We used HPLC, superfusion, immunoblot, immunoprecipitation, cell lines and primary cell culture.

o        We also conducted a project in collaboration with the Terry Robinson’s laboratory that demonstrated that PKC inhibitors attenuate behaviors associated with amphetamine exposure in rats.

·         09/1996 – 08/1997. Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program and Honor’s Thesis Research; Mentor: Terry Robinson, PhD; University of Michigan Department of Biopsychology.

o        Investigation of the neurobiology and biopsychology of addiction focusing on the effects of environment on dopamine levels in the midbrains of rats following exposure to amphetamine or cocaine.

o        We used behavioral assays, small animal surgery techniques, stereotaxic surgery techniques, in vivo microdialysis, histological analysis, and HPLC.

 

Publications

 

Peer-Reviewed Journal Articles

Richardson-Burns SM, Kleinschmidt-DeMasters BK, DeBiasi RL, Tyler KL.

Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy and apoptosis of infected oligodendrocytes in the central nervous system of patients with and without AIDS. Arch Neurol. 2002 Dec;59(12):1930-6.

 

DeBiasi RL, Kleinschmidt-DeMasters BK, Richardson-Burns S, Tyler KL.

Central nervous system apoptosis in human herpes simplex virus and cytomegalovirus encephalitis. J Infect Dis. 2002 Dec 1;186(11):1547-57.

 

Richardson-Burns SM, Kominsky DJ, Tyler KL.

Reovirus-induced neuronal apoptosis is mediated by caspase 3 and is associated with the activation of death receptors. J Neurovirol. 2002 Oct;8(5):365-80.

 

Kantor L, Hewlett GH, Park YH, Richardson-Burns SM, Mellon MJ, Gnegy ME. 

Protein kinase C and intracellular calcium are required for amphetamine-mediated dopamine release via the norepinephrine transporter in undifferentiated PC12 cells. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 2001 Jun;297(3):1016-24.

 

Richardson-Burns SM, Haroutunian V, Davis KL, Watson SJ, Meador-Woodruff JH.

Metabotropic glutamate receptor mRNA expression in the schizophrenic thalamus. Biol Psychiatry. 2000 Jan 1;47(1):22-8.

 

Browman KE, Kantor L, Richardson S, Badiani A, Robinson TE, Gnegy ME.

Injection of the protein kinase C inhibitor Ro31-8220 into the nucleus accumbens attenuates the acute response to amphetamine: tissue and behavioral studies. Brain Res. 1998 Dec 14;814(1-2):112-9.

 

Invited Reviews

Kominsky DJ, Richardson-Burns SM, and Tyler KL.

Apoptosis in Viral Infection: In humans, animal models, and cell culture. Virology. Review. Manuscript submitted.

 

Selected Scientific Presentations, Posters and Published Abstracts

 

National/International

American Society for Virology 21th Annual Meeting 2003, Davis, California

Platform presentation: “Bcl-2 family proteins Bid and Bim play a key role in regulating the reovirus-induced mitochondrial pathway of apoptosis in primary neuronal cultures.”

Molecular Mechanisms of Apoptosis Keystone Symposia 2003, Banff, Alberta, Canada

Poster Presentation: “An in vitro model for viral encephalitis: T3 reovirus induces neuronal apoptosis that is mediated by both death receptors and mitochondrial pathways involving Bid, Bim and release of smac/DIABLO.”

American Society for Virology 20th Annual Meeting 2002, Lexington, Kentucky

Platform presentation: “Reovirus-induced neuronal apoptosis predominantly involves death receptor rather than mitochondria-mediated apoptotic pathways.”

American Association of Neuropathologists 78th Annual Meeting, 2002, Denver, Colorado

Platform presentation: “CNS apoptosis in Herpes Simplex Encephalitis, Cytomegalovirus Encephalitis and PML.”

Society for Neuroscience 31st Annual Meeting 2001, San Diego, California

            Poster presentation: “ Reovirus-induced neuronal apoptosis is mediated by caspase 3 activation.”

American Society for Virology 19th Annual Meeting 2001, Madison, Wisconsin

            Platform Presentation: “Reovirus Infection Induces Neuronal Apoptosis.”

Seventh International Symposium on Double-Stranded RNA Viruses 2000, Palm Beach, Aruba

            Poster Presentation: “Reovirus induces apoptosis in neuronal cell lines and primary neuronal cultures.”

 

Society for Neuroscience 29th Annual Meeting 1999, Miami, Florida

Poster Presentation: “Metabotropic glutamate receptor expression in the prefrontal cortex and striatum of schizophrenics.”

Society of Biological Psychiatry 54th Annual Convention 1999, Washington, DC

            Poster Presentation: “Serotonin receptor abnormalities in the schizophrenic thalamus.”

Society for Neuroscience 28th Annual Meeting 1998, Los Angeles, California

Poster Presentation: “Protein kinase C inhibitors block amphetamine-mediated dopamine release in cell lines containing plasmalemmal transporters for DA or norepinephrine.”

Local

UCD Neurovirology-Molecular Biology Research Seminar: November 2002, Denver, CO

Seminar speaker: “T3 reovirus in the CNS: an update.”

UCHSC 2002 Student Research Forum: October 2002, Denver, CO

Poster Competition: “Reovirus-induced neuronal apoptosis is mediated by activation of death receptors and release of smac/DIABLO from the mitochondria.”

UCHSC Neuroscience Training Program Annual Retreat: September 2002, Keystone, CO
            Poster Presentation: “Altered neurovirulence of T3 reovirus Variant K is associated with a decreased

ability to grow and induce apoptosis in the cortex of mice.”

UCHSC Neurology Grand Rounds: May 2002, Denver, CO

Seminar Speaker: “PML is associated with CNS apoptosis in both AIDS and non-AIDS patients.”

Rocky Mountain Neuroscience Group Annual Meeting: May 2002, Denver, CO

Platform Presenter: “PML is associated with apoptosis of JC virus infected oligodendrocytes.”

UCD Neurovirology-Molecular Biology Research Seminar: January 2002, Denver, CO

Seminar Speaker: “Reovirus induced apoptosis in the neonatal mouse CNS and neuronal cultures.”

Veterans Administration REAP Research Seminar:  November 2001, Denver, CO

Seminar Speaker: “Reovirus Induces Neuronal Apoptosis.”

National Jewish Hospital, Immunology Research In Progress October, 2001; Denver, CO

Seminar Speaker: “Reovirus-induced neuronal apoptosis is associated with caspase activation both in vitro and in vivo.”

UCHSC Neuroscience Training Program Annual Retreat: September 2001, Keystone, CO

Poster Presentation: “Reovirus Induces Neuronal Apoptosis.”

UCHSC Neurovirology-Molecular Biology Research Seminar: April 2001, Denver, CO

            Seminar Speaker: “Reovirus induces apoptosis in neuronal cell lines and primary neuronal cultures.”

 

 

Teaching Experience

Winter Quarter 2003: Neuroanatomy and Neurobiology Laboratory: UCD Dental School

Fall Quarter 2002: Neuroanatomy and Neurobiology Laboratory: UCD Medical School

Fall Quarter 2001: Neuroanatomy and Neurobiology Laboratory: UCD Medical School

 

Supervisory/Advisory Experience

Research Rotation Supervisor for Jason Lunden, PhD graduate student, UCSHC Neuroscience

Training Program:  Fall Quarter 2002.

Research/Laboratory Techniques Training for undergraduate research fellows, Meador-Woodruff

Laboratory, University of Michigan Mental Health Research Institute: Fall 1998-Summer 1999.

 

Research/Laboratory Techniques

Molecular Biology

Western blot                                          Northern blot                             

Southern blot                                         Agarose gels

PCR/rtPCR                                            DNA sequencing

In vitro translation                                  cloning/sub-cloning                   

site-directed mutagenesis                       Immunoprecipitation                  

immunoblot                                           cell line transfection

RNase protection assay                         Nucleic acid and protein isolation

 

Cell Biology

Mouse primary cell culture: cortical neurons, hippocampal neurons, astrocytes, cerebellar granule cells (rat).

Cell lines: Neuro2a, NB41a3, HEK293, HeLa, L929, COS-7, PC-12, SK-N-SH, SK-N-MC, HCN2a, HCN-1.

Immunocytochemistry/immunofluorescence (single-triple label)

Fluorescent dyes: nucleus, mitochondria, membranes, intracellular Ca2+

AO (acridine orange/ethidium bromide) apoptosis assay

Hoechst/PI: apoptosis-nuclear morphology assay

Fluorometric substrate assays (e.g. caspase activation assays)

Viral infection of primary cultures and cell lines

Kinase assays                           TUNEL                                     

Whole-cell fluorometry                Flow cytometry and FACS

Viral growth/plaque assays         sub-cellular fractionation

Tissue/cell superfusion               HPLC   

 

Tissue

In situ hybridization                                Immunohistochemistry              

radio-ligand binding assays                     Western/immunoblot

Histological analysis                              Histological dyes          

Microtome/cryostat tissue sectioning       Histo-pathologic analysis

Mouse anatomy/microanatomy: central nervous system, liver, heart          

 

Microscopy

Light microscopy                                   Digital deconvolution microscopy

Single-cell microscopy                           Phase-contrast microscopy

 

Animal/Behavioral (all mouse and rat)

Stereotaxic surgery                                Surgery/semi-sterile surgery

Dissection/brain dissection                     Intracardial perfusion

General behavioral analysis                     In vivo microdialysis      

Injections: intracerebral/intracranial, intraperitoneal, intramuscular, subcutaneous                           

 

 

Outside Interests

Snowboarding, camping, hiking, mountain biking, yoga, martial arts, photography, traveling/road trips,

playing the bass guitar and singing in local/garage band, African cichlid aquariums, cats and dogs.