Ittai Bushlin, B.A.
M.D./Ph.D. Student, Department of Pharmacology and Systems Therapeutics, Neuroscience Training Area
E-mail: ittai.bushlin@mssm.edu
Tel: (212) 241-6545

Training and Education

M.D./Ph.D. Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY

B.A. (2003) University of Rochester, Rochester, NY

Current Research

Morphine and its derivatives are the most commonly prescribed analgesics currently used in the treatment of chronic pain. However, the clinical use of these drugs is limited by their addictive potential. While some of the key neural circuits and brain regions involved in the development and maintenance of opiate addiction have been identified, the molecular mechanisms that underlie changes in these regions are still under investigation. I am interested in characterizing the global changes in protein expression that occur at the synapse after chronic morphine administration and in evaluating the mechanisms by which these changes influence synaptic transmission. I am also interested in investigating the contribution of protein phosphorylation induced by chronic morphine treatment to the long term regulation of synaptic activity.

Publications

Furukawa K, Matsuzaki-Kobayashi M, Hasegawa T, Kikuchi A, Sugeno N, Itoyama Y, Wang Y, Yao PJ, Bushlin I, Takeda A. Plasma membrane ion permeability induced by mutant alpha-synuclein contributes to the degeneration of neural cells. J Neurochem. 2006 May;97(4):1071-7.

Yao PJ, Bushlin I, Petralia RS. Partially overlapping distribution of epsin1 and HIP1 at the synapse: analysis by immunoelectron microscopy. J Comp Neurol. 2006 Jan 10;494(2):368-79.

Yao PJ, Bushlin I, Furukawa K. Preserved synaptic vesicle recycling in hippocampal neurons in a mouse Alzheimer's disease model. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2005 Apr 29;330(1):34-8.

Yao PJ, Petralia RS, Bushlin I, Wang Y, Furukawa K. Synaptic distribution of the endocytic accessory proteins AP180 and CALM. J Comp Neurol. 2005 Jan 3;481(1):58-69.