Welcome to the Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy

This page describes our research, teaching, facilities, and environment.

Research. Developmental biology and neuroscience, two of the most important themes in modern biology, overlap in the field of developmental neurobiology, which is the major research focus of the Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy. The fourteen regular full-time faculty maintain active research programs addressing problems including early pattern formation in the nervous system, neuronal and glial fate specification, axon guidance, development of the auditory and visual systems, neurobiology of ligand-gated ion channels, and the cell biology of amino acid transporters. They study several model systems (mouse, chicken, zebrafish, and Xenopus) using a wide range of methods: cell culture, embryology, and genetics; biochemistry, molecular biology, and electrophysiology; and electron microscopy, confocal microscopy and calcium imaging. Current federal and foundation grant support totals more than $3 million annually.

Teaching. The department offers 1) graduate courses and research opportunities for doctoral students in the interdepartmental programs in Neuroscience and Molecular Biology, 2) graduate training leading to the M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Neurobiology and Anatomy; and 3) opportunities for postdoctoral research training. In addition, the department's faculty are responsible for teaching Human Gross Anatomy, Histology, Embryology, and Neuroanatomy to medical students and Oral Histology and Neuroanatomy to dental students in the School of Medicine.

Facilities. The department occupies approximately 17,000 square feet in the Wintrobe Building, adjacent to the School of Medicine, Eccles Institute of Human Genetics, Vivarium, and other major research buildings. Its facilities include a state-of-the-art digital darkroom, several cryostats and microtomes, shared molecular biology equipment, a timelapse fluorescence microscope, and a confocal microscope.

The School of Medicine has a multitude of excellent core facilities nearby, which include:

• Fluorescent Imaging and Confocal Microscopy
• DNA Sequencing
• Genomics
• Protein Interaction
• DNA and Peptide Synthesis
• Transgenic Animal Homologous Recombination
• Fluorescence-Activated Cell Sorting
• Mass Spectrometry

Environment. The University of Utah is a major research university located in a region with extremely attractive residential, cultural, and recreational opportunities.

Thomas N. Parks, Ph.D.
Professor and Chairman