Dr. Barker’s primary research interest is in dissecting the neural circuits that contribute to the development of neuropsychiatric illnesses characterized by inflexible behavior. Her lab combines traditional and cutting edge techniques to investigate how these circuits function in an intact system to mediate behavioral flexibility and how deficits in control over actions may result from insults such as drug and alcohol exposure or infection.
RESEARCH INTERESTS
Funded Projects
NIAAA R00AA024499
Arbitration between goal-directed and habitual ethanol seeking by the nucleus accumbens shell.
These studies combine in vivo electrophysiology, chemo-, and optogenetics to investigate the glutamatergic projections to the nucleus accumbens shell that regulate response strategy selection.
Selected Published Results:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30559114
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29302616
PI: Barker
Team: Bryant, Buck
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NIDA R03DA047919
Alterations in corticostriatal control of cocaine seeking in HIV infection
Substance use disorders are highly comorbid with HIV infection. These studies combine a humanized mouse model of HIV infection with behavioral tools to investigate the impact of combined chronic HIV infection and cocaine exposure on the development of compulsive-like drug seeking and associated alterations in plasticity associated molecules. In collaboration with Dr. Santhi Gorantla at UNMC.
PI: Barker
Team: Giacometti, Huang, Buck
Hartwell Foundation Postdoctoral Fellowship
Sex differences in the role of astrocyte dysfunction in the development of depression-like behaviors following adolescent ethanol exposure.
Adolescent alcohol use is highly prevalent and is linked to depressive symptoms later in life, particularly among females. We will investigate sex differences in the effects of adolescent ethanol exposure on altered astrocyte function that may underlie the subsequent development of depression-like behavior.
PI: Giacometti
Team: Chandran, Figueroa
NIAAA R21AA027629
Sex differences in regulation of reinstatement of ethanol seeking by nucleus accumbens glutamate signaling
These studies will combine fiber photometry with molecular techniques to investigate sex differences in the contribution of discrete neural circuits to relapse-related behaviors in ethanol dependent male and female mice.
PI: Barker
Team: Giacometti, Bryant, Buck
NIDA AVENIR DP2DA051907
Integrating preclinical models to develop converging mechanistic data in co-occurring HIV and substance use
These studies combine intersectional viral strategies with preclinical models of progressive HIV infection to identify strategies to reduce inflexible drug seeking in HIV infection and cART treatment. We will identify circuit- and cell type-specific alterations in humanized mice infected with HIV-1, and wild-type mice infected with a chimeric virus to generate parallel data sets.
PI: Barker
Team: Xie, Giacometti, Buck
Other Ongoing Projects
Ventral hippocampus circuits in compulsive-like behavior
Lead by: Katie Bryant and Lauren Buck
These studies combine behavioral analyses with photometric, electrophysiological, and chemogenetic tools to dissect the discrete neural circuits regulating compulsive-like ethanol seeking.
Sex and estrous cycle mediated differences in ethanol seeking
Lead by: Laura Giacometti and Qiaowei Xie
These studies investigate behavioral, molecular, and circuit-level differences between males and females at baseline and in response to insults, including exposure to chronic intermittent ethanol or infection.