Publications by authors named "J R Nickols"

Opioid addiction is characterized by adaptations in the mesolimbic dopamine system that occur during chronic opioid use. Alterations in dopaminergic transmission contribute to pathological drug-seeking behavior and other symptoms associated with opioid withdrawal following drug discontinuation, making drug abstinence challenging and contributing to high rates of relapse among those suffering from substance use disorder. Recently, the use of dopamine partial agonists has been proposed as a potential strategy to restore dopaminergic signalling during drug withdrawal, while avoiding the adverse side effects associated with stronger modulators of dopaminergic transmission.

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Bacteria-induced sepsis is a common cause of pulmonary endothelial barrier dysfunction and can progress toward acute respiratory distress syndrome. Elevations in intracellular cAMP tightly regulate pulmonary endothelial barrier integrity; however, cAMP signals are highly compartmentalized: whether cAMP is barrier-protective or -disruptive depends on the compartment (plasma membrane or cytosol, respectively) in which the signal is generated. The mammalian soluble adenylyl cyclase isoform 10 (AC10) is uniquely stimulated by bicarbonate and is expressed in pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells (PMVECs).

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The cre/loxP system is used routinely to manipulate gene expression in the mouse nervous system. In order to delete genes specifically from the telencephalon, the Foxg1-cre line was created previously by replacing the intron-less Foxg1 coding region with cre, resulting in a Foxg1 heterozygous mouse. As the telencephalon of heterozygous Foxg1 mice was reported to be normal, this genotype often has been used as the control in subsequent analyses.

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