e-mail: nearj@indiana.edu phone: (812) 855-2270 Office Address: 110 Jordan Hall Bloomington, IN 47405
B.A., Psychology, University of California, Santa Cruz, 1973.
Ph.D., Biochemistry, State University of New York at Buffalo, 1979.
Postdoctoral studies in neurochemistry, Henry R. Mahler, Indiana University Department of Chemistry, 1983.
| 1990- | Associate Professor of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Medical Sciences Program, Indiana University School of Medicine |
| Associate Professor of Neural Science, Indiana University at Bloomington | |
| Full Member, Indiana University Graduate School | |
| 1989-90 | Assistant Professor of Neural Science, Indiana University at Bloomington |
| 1984-90 | Assistant Professor of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Medical Sciences Program, Indiana University School of Medicine |
| Associate Member, Indiana University Graduate School | |
| 1983-84 | Assistant Scientist, Department of Chemistry, Indiana University at Bloomington |
My research is directed toward understanding various biochemical processes involved in chemical neurotransmission. Of particular interest are the catecholamine and serotonin transport systems in storage vesicles and the presynaptic plasma membrane. Current efforts involve the use of biochemical, immunochemical and molecular biological methods to assess the structural and functional differences in related transporters from various regions of the brain and other tissues. We are also developing a technique for functional studies of neurotransmitter transporters expressed in Xenopus oocytes or reconstituted in planar lipid bilayers using electrochemical detection methods. The use of ultramicroelectrodes for the latter work offers distinct advantages with regard to time resolution and sensitivity when compared with current methods employing isotopically labeled substrates. A better understanding of the biochemistry and pharmacology of this system may bear important implications for the treatment of movement disorders such as Parkinsonism, as well as for various psychiatric disorders.
Joseph A. Near, Talmage R. Bosin, John B. Watkins III, Inclusion of a competency-based curriculum in medical pharmacology. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol 366, 26-29.
Leszczyszyn, D.J., Jankowski, J.A., Kennedy, R.T., Kawagoe, K.T., Near, J.A., Viveros, O.H., Diliberto, E.J., and Wightman, R.M. Resolved, quantized catecholamine release from individual chromaffin cells. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 88, 10754-10760 (1991).
Vincent, M.J. and Near, J.A. Purification of a dihydrotetrabenazine binding protein from adrenal medulla. Mol. Pharmacol. 40, 889-894 (1991).
Wiedemann, D.J., Garris, P.A., Near, J.A. and Wightman, R.M. Effect of chronic haloperidol treatment on stimulated dopamine overflow in the rat striatum. J. Pharmacol. Exp. Thera. 261, 574-579 (1992).
Near, J.A., Odya, C.E. and Li, X. Monoclonal antibodies reactive with a monoamine transporter preparation purified from bovine adrenal. Biochem. Pharmacol. 48, 87-91 (1994).
Adamson, C.R., Emley, T.E., Herbig, L.J. and Near, J.A. Effects of nerve growth factor on dihydrotetrabenazine binding to PC12 cells. Neurochem. Intl. 30, 411-415 (1997).
M. L. Mundorf, K. P. Troyer, S. E. Hochstetler, J. A. Near, and R. M. Wightman. Vesicular Ca(2+) participates in the catalysis of exocytosis. Journal of Biological Chemistry. 275 (13), 9136-9142 (2000).
Joseph A. Near, Talmage R. Bosin, John B. Watkins III, Inclusion of a competency-based curriculum in medical pharmacology. Naunyn-Schmiedeberg's Arch Pharmacol 366, 26-29 (2002).
Whitley, J.L., Freeman, J. and Near, J.A. Voltammetric monitoring of transport by a vesicular monoamine transporter expressed in Xenopus oocytes. (submitted).