University at Buffalo (UB)
Published July 17, 2013 This content is archived.
The University at Buffalo’s Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology was prominently represented at the “Melatonin Biology: Actions and Therapeutics” conference.
One of a series of international conferences organized by the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology (FASEB), the 2013 event was held July 7-12 in Niagara Falls, N.Y.
Margarita Dubocovich, PhD, chair and professor, delivered the opening session, a presentation on melatonin titled “The Molecule of Darkness: From Discovery to its Target Receptors.”
He discussed his innovative idea to accelerate compound discovery by combining dynamic, 3-D protein models—used as physical human computer interface devices—with low-to-moderate resolution structural information generated from proteomics to predict near-crystal structure resolution structures.
Shannon Clough, a neuroscience PhD student in Dubocovich’s lab, and Kate Evely, a BS/MS student, were invited to present their research findings.
Clough presented “MT1 Melatonin Receptor Deletion Impairs Learning Discrimination and Reversal Tasks in C3H/HeN Mice.” Evely’s presentation was titled “Distribution and Functional Characterization of Melatonin Receptors in the Rodent Habenula.”
Marina Popovska-Gorevski, a master’s student in Dubocovich’s lab, was one of five participants to receive a Best Poster award.
In addition, Ekue Adamah-Biassi, a PhD student, received a FASEB Minority Access to Research Careers Poster/Platform Presenter Travel Award to attend this event.