Rebecca Howard
Assistant Professor
Contact Information and Background
Email: rhoward@skidmore.edu
Phone: 518-580-8191
Office: Dana Science Center 218
EDUCATION
- Ph.D., University of California, San Francisco
- B. A., Pamona College
COURSES TAUGHT AT SKIDMORE
- Introductory Chemical Research
- Intermediate Chemical Research
- Biochemistry
RESEARCH INTERESTS
The Howard research group uses simple model systems—including bacterial proteins,
frog cells, and computer simulations—to study how drugs such as alcohol affect electrical
signaling in the human brain (Howard et al., 2011a). Our primary approach is two-electrode
voltage clamp electrophysiology in oocytes from African clawed frogs, a straightforward
but powerful method to study cellular electrochemical activity. Students in the Howard
group have the opportunity to gain expertise in this widely used technique, as well
as nucleic acid mutagenesis and purification, reagent preparation, electrophysiological
measurements and analysis, protein oxidation and reduction, and molecular modeling
and dynamics, among other things. Our research applies recent advances in biochemistry,
chemical biology, pharmacology, and biophysics to the critical and fascinating subject
of drug use and abuse. For example, we recently demonstrated that alcohol enhances
the amount of current conducted by certain ion channels (Howard et al., 2011b). By
mutating specific amino acid residues in the ion channel proteins, we were able to
increase or decrease their sensitivity to alcohol. Using these data, we collaborated
with computational chemists to simulate the binding of alcohol to the protein. We
are now testing the predictions of our binding models, and continuing to probe for
additional important drug-protein interactions.