Associate Professor
Phone: 501-686-7632
Fax: 501-686-5521
Email: zhengfang@uams.edu
Education
Ph.D. – University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, 1994
Research Interests
My laboratory studies the regulation of glutamate receptors, an important family of neurotransmitter receptors. Glutamate receptors are involved in multiple neurological diseases, such as stroke-induced paralysis and cognitive dysfunction, epilepsy, and perhaps the debilitating consequences of Alzheimer’s disease, the neurological correlates of schizophrenia and ALS. By better understanding these receptors, we will better understand the underlying causes of these diseases, and be better equipped to develop effective treatments for these serious conditions. My laboratory utilizes a multidisciplinary approach that utilizes molecular, biochemical, and electrophysiological techniques.
Recent Research Support
Completed Research
- NIH/NINDS R01 NS039418 (05/01/00 – 4/30/11)
“Zinc dependent apparent desensitization of NMDA receptors” - NIH/NINDS R01 NS058503 (07/01/09 – 6/30/11)
“Canonical transient receptor potential channels and excitotoxicity”
Publications
- Phelan KD, Shwe UT, Cozart MA, Wu H, Mock MM, Abramowitz J, Birnbaumer L, Zheng F. TRPC3 channels play a critical role in the theta component of pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus in mice. Epilepsia. 58(2):247-254, 2017. PMID: 28012173
- Zheng F. TRPC Channels and Epilepsy. Adv Exp Med Biol. 976:123-135, 2017. PMID: 28508318
- Phelan KD, Shwe UT, Williams DK, Greenfield LJ, Zheng F. Pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus in mice: A comparison of spectral analysis of electroencephalogram and behavioral grading using the Racine scale. Epilepsy Res. 117:90-6, 2015. PMID: 26432759
- Phelan KD, Shwe UT, Abramowitz J, Birnbaumer L, Zheng F. Critical role of canonical transient receptor potential channel 7 in initiation of seizures. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 5;111(31):11533-8, 2014. PMID: 25049394
- Phelan KD, Shwe UT, Abramowitz J, Wu H, Rhee SW, Howell MD, Gottschall PE, Freichel M, Flockerzi V, Birnbaumer L, Zheng F. Canonical Transient Receptor Channel 5 (TRPC5) and TRPC1/4 Contribute to Seizure and Excitotoxicity by Distinct Cellular Mechanisms. Mol. Pharmacol. 83, 429-438, 2013. PMID: 23188715
- Phelan KD, Mock MM, Kretz O, Shwe UT, Kozhemyakin M, Greenfield LJ, Dietrich A, Birnbaumer L, Freichel M, Flockerzi V, Zheng F. Heteromeric canonical transient receptor potential 1 and 4 channels play a critical role in epileptiform burst firing and seizure-induced neurodegeneration. Mol. Pharmacol. 81, 384-392, 2012. PMID: 22144671