معرفی
Derek Molliver is a Professor in the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the University of New England College of Osteopathic Medicine (COM). He holds leadership roles, including Director of the Histology & Imaging Core and affiliations with the Center for Excellence in the Neurosciences and the Center for Pain Research (COBRE). His research focuses on sensory neuron biology, particularly mechanisms underlying pain (nociception) and neurotrophic factor signaling. Dr. Molliver's work integrates molecular, cellular, and systems neuroscience approaches to understand how GPCR signaling and mitochondrial function regulate neuronal response properties and resilience to injury.
Education: B.A. from Williams College (1988), Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Washington University in St. Louis (1997). Postdoctoral training at the Vollum Institute (Oregon Health & Science University) and the University of Pittsburgh, where he established an NIH-funded pain research program. He joined UNE in 2014 as Associate Professor, promoted to Professor (2020).
Research interests include:
- GPCR signaling networks in sensory neurons
- Neurotrophic factor regulation of nociceptor plasticity
- Mitochondrial bioenergetics in neuronal stress responses
- Human/mouse comparative sensory neuron models
Current NIH-funded projects investigate:
- Cellular mechanisms linking mitochondrial dysfunction to pain hypersensitivity
- Role of Epac2 and eukaryotic elongation factor 2 kinase
- GPCR signaling differences between human and rodent sensory neuron models
Lab affiliations include the Center for Cell Signaling Research, Histology & Imaging Core, and COM Research - Neuroscience and Pain programs.
