Department of Neurological Sciences : University of Vermont

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Department of Neurological Sciences

Bio for Betsy Ezerman, Ph.D.

Betsy Ezerman, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor
Department of Neurological Sciences

Contact Information

E-mail: Elizabeth.Ezerman@uvm.edu
Office Location: Neurological Sciences, Health Sci Rsrch Facility, Rm 414B, Burlington, VT

Education

Ph.D. degree: University of Pennsylvania, 1968
Postdoctoral Training: University of Vermont, 1982-1988

Academic Interests

My primary responsibilities currently are confined to teaching. I am course director for the VIC Human Structure and Function (HSF) and the Advanced Integration Anatomical Dissection courses. HSF is an integrated 12-week, first year COM course that combines Gross Anatomy, Histology, Imaging, Embryology, Physiology, and Doctoring Skills. The Advanced Integration Anatomical Dissection course provides an opportunity for senior medical students to enhance their anatomical knowledge in specific body regions.

Research Interests

Although my research activities are presently limited, I have a longtime interest in developmental neurobiology, in particular axon guidance in developing chick embryos. Most of my recent studies have been in collaboration with Dr. Cynthia Forehand’s laboratory.

I am interested in factors that influence the development of appropriate axon pathways in the central and peripheral nervous systems. Preganglionic sympathetic neurons as well as spinal sensory neurons have been used as model systems. With Dr. Cynthia Forehand, I have performed experiments using in ovo microsurgery and chemical perturbations of chicken embryos followed by double labeling (fluorescent dextran amines and fluorescent carbocyanine dyes) to study the development of specificity of interaction of preganglionic sympathetics with their targets. We are currently utilizing viral and electroporation methods to deliver function-blocking RNAi’s to the avian hypothalamus.

Academic Appointments

College of Medicine Faculty Appointment: July 1, 1988

Publications

D. Robinson, E.B. Ezerman, C.J. Forehand (2009) Myosin II regulation of sensory afferent growth in the embryonic chicken spinal cord, Program No. 128.4/B13. 2009 Neuroscience Meeting Planner. Chicago, IL: Society for Neuroscience, 2009.

Coutinho-Budd J.C., Ezerman, E.B. and C.J. Forehand (2008). The Effect of cAMP Signaling on the Longitudinal Extension of Spinal Sensory Neurons in the Chicken Embryo. J. Anat. 213: 547- 554.

Berggren, K., Ezerman, E.B. , P. McCaffrey and C.J. Forehand (2001). The expression and regulation of the retinoic-acid sythetic enzyme RALDH-2 in the embryonic chicken wing. Dev. Dyn. 221:1-16.

Forehand, C.J., Ezerman, E.B., J.P., Goldblatt, Skidmore, D.L. and J.C. Glover (1998) Segment-specific pattern of sympathetic preganglionic axon projections in the chicken embryo spinal cord is altered by retinoids. Proc. Nat. Acad. Sci. USA 95:10878-10883.

Ezerman, E.B. and C.J. Forehand (1996) Development and segmental organization of rostrocaudal dendrites of rat sympathetic preganglionic neurons. J. Autonom. Nerv. Syst. 57:29-35.

To view more of Dr. Ezerman's publications, please visit PubMed.