Episode 323 - Fidel Santamaria, PhD

On February 26, 2026 we were joined by Dr. Peter Fox to talk about quantitative brain imaging methods and how they can reveal localized changes in brain structure in brain disorders that traditionally have not been associated with specific neuropathology. Guest:Peter Fox, Director, Brain Imaging Institute and Professor of Radiology, Neurology, and Physiology at UT Health San Antonio.Participating:George Perry, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UTSA.Host:Charles Wilson, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UTSA.

On February 19, 2026 we were visited by Dr. Dayu Lin to hear about her work on some of the cell groups that make up the hypothalamus and their function in activating innate social behaviors in mice, including parenting and protection of their young. Guest: Dayu Lin, Professor in the Departments of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Institute for Translational Neuroscience, Langone Medical Center, New York UniversityParticipating: Antony Burgos-Robles, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UTSA.Aayushma Kunwar, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UTSA.Host:Charles Wilson, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UTSA.Thanks to James Tepper for original music.

On February 5, 2026 we met with Dr.Jonathan Bohmann to learn about the structure and function of acetylcholinesterase, the extracellular enzyme that controls the strength and time course of neurotransmitter at cholinergic synapses. He explained how computational models of molecular structure is be used to understand the functional properties of the enzyme and to design drugs that can modify its action.Guest:Jonathan Bohmann, Scientist, Southwest Research Institute, San AntonioParticipating:Jenny Hsieh, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UTSAHost:Charles Wilson, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UTSA

On January 30, 2026, Fidel Santamaria returned to the podcast (after 18 years) to talk about the thermodynamics of ion channel activation and deactivation, and the changes in neuronal activity that occur with changes in temperature.Guest: Fidel Santamaria, Professor, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology.Host: Charles Wilson, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology.Thanks to Jim Tepper for original music

On December 8, 2025 we spoke with Dr. Matthew Goodwin about the use of wearable biosensor technology and machine learning to improve behavioral evaluation of autism, to provide real time alerts for caregivers and more effective interventions before the onset of potentially dangerous behavioral situations. Guest:Matthew Goodwin, Professor and Associate Chair of Research at the Department of Public Health and Health Sciences and the Khouri College of Computer Sciences, at Northeastern University.Participating:Leslie Neeley, Director of the Child and Adolescent Policy Research Institute, and Associate Director of the Brain Health Consortium, UTSAHost:Charles Wilson, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UTSAThanks to James Tepper for original music

On December 4, 2025 we talked with Dr. Mike Beckstead about his work on changes in dopaminergic neuron excitability in the ventral tegmental area in an animal model of Alzheimer's disease. Mike explained the molecular mechanism of the excitability change and the change in gene expression at its cause.Guest: Mike Beckstead, Professor and Hille Family Foundation Chair in Neurodegenerative Disease Research, Aging & Metabolism Research Program Oklahoma Medical Research FoundationParticipating:Matt Wanat, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UTSAHost:Charles Wilson, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UTSAThanks to James Tepper for original music

On November 20, 2025 we met with Dr. Cristian Lasagna-Reeves to talk about tau protein, its normal function, and what is known about how it aggregates to form the tangles seen in a variety of neurodegenerative brain conditions. We discussed the problem of determining whether the aggregates were causes or effects of the disease process, and whether reducing expression of tau might be an effective treatment.Guest:Cristian Lasagna-Reeves, Associate Professor, Dept. of Neurology, Baylor College of MedicineParticipating:George Perry, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UT San AntonioHyoung-gon Lee, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UT San AntonioHost:Charles Wilson, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UT San AntonioThanks to Jim Tepper for original music

On November 13, 2025, we met with Dr. Maria Diehl, to learn about her experiments on avoidance learning in rats. The conversation focused on learning in a social context, in which one animal benefits from watching another learn the task.We had to relocate this week, because of a noisy construction project in the hallway outside our usual room. Guest:Maria Diehl, Associate Professor in Psychological Science, Kansas State University.Participating:Tony Burgos-Robles, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UTSAItamar Lerner, Department of Psychology, UTSAHost:Charles Wilson, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UTSAThanks to Jim Tepper for original music

On November 6, 2025, I spoke with Dr. Jason O'Connor about the behavioral and psychological effects of inflammation, and their similarity to depression. Jason explained how inflammation can produce those symptoms by increasing levels of kynurenine and metabolites in the brain. We discussed the possibility that depression may sometimes result from a rise in those metabolites in the absence of inflammation.Guest:Jason O'Connor, Associate Professor of Pharmacology at the UT San Antonio Long School of Medicine and the Audie Murphy VA Hospital.Host:Charles Wilson, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UT San AntonioThanks to James Tepper for original music

On October 23, 2025 we met with Dr. Peter Crino about how mutations occurring during cell division in the developing cerebral cortex can lead to localized developmental malformations of cortical structure and neurological disorders including focal epilepsy.Guest:Peter Crino, Richard and Kathryn Taylor Professor, Chair, Department of Neurology, University of Maryland School of Medicine.Participating:Jenny Hsieh, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UT San Antonio.Host:Charles Wilson, Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, UT San Antonio.