Timothy Jarome

Synopsis:

Research in the Jarome lab is focused on elucidating the cellular and molecular mechanisms of memory formation and storage. The lab focuses on mechanisms of initial memory storage and those involved in memory modification following retrieval (recall), the latter of which has significant potential for the treatment of anxiety disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Description:

The Jarome lab is funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and current projects include 1) understanding the role and regulation of sex differences in protein degradation in the amygdala during fear memory formation, 2) understanding the role of atypical linear ubiquitination in fear memory formation, 3) understanding the role of sex differences in cortical DNA hydroxymethylation during fear memory formation, 4) identifying epigenetic mechanisms of memory modification (reconsolidation) following retrieval, 5) understanding the role of hypothalamic DNA hydroxymethylation in the development of obesity, and 6) understanding the role of altered hippocampus protein degradation in obesity-induced memory impairments. Additionally, the lab has a number of collaborative projects at Virginia Tech and around the country that examine a variety of other neurobiological mechanisms in normal and abnormal memory formation, aging and disease.