University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics

George B. Richerson, MD, PhD

Professor and Head; Department of Neurology
Roy J. Carver Chair in Neuroscience

Professor; Department of Molecular Physiology & Biophysics
Attending Neurologist, VA Hospital, Iowa City, IA
Adjunct Professor, Department of Neurology, Yale University

Address

Phone: (319) 356-4296
Fax: (319) 384-7199
E-mail: george-richerson@uiowa.edu

Clinical Specialty

• General Neurology
• Breathing Control Disorders
• Veteran's Health

Education

• B.S., Iowa State University, Aerospace Engineering, with Honors and Distinction.
• M.D., University of Iowa
• Ph.D., University of Iowa, Physiology & Biophysics.

Residency

• Chief Resident in Neurology. Yale University School of Medicine, Neurology Residency. Yale-New Haven Hospital. New Haven, CT.
• Internship. Waterbury Hospital Health Center, Waterbury, CT.

Certification

• Diplomate, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology #38684

Research Interests

• Sudden death in epilepsy (SUDEP) and infants (SIDS)
• GABA mechanisms in epilepsy
• Non-motor symptoms of Parkinson's disease
• Control of breathing
• Sleep
• Serotonin
• Brainstem mechanisms

Lab Website

http://www.healthcare.uiowa.edu/labs/richerson/

Honors & Awards

• Best Doctors in America. 2005-
• Distinguished Visiting Neuroscientist, Program in Neuroscience, University of Toronto. Toronto, ON 10/2008.
• Distinguished Alumnus, University of Iowa Medicine Alumni Society. 2006
• Member, American Neurological Association. Elected in 9/2003.
• Alberta Heritage Foundation Visiting Lecturer. University of Alberta and University of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. 4/2001.
• Michael Dekin Memorial Lecturer. 1st annual lecture. University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. New Brunswick, NJ. 12/1999.
• Distinguished Alumnus speaker. University of Iowa, Medical Scientist Training (MD/PhD) Program. 11/1997.
• Heath Award. Student Medical Research Day, University of Iowa. 1986
• Mead Johnson Award. National Student Research Forum. Galveston, TX. 1985
• Borts Award. Student Medical Research Day, University of Iowa. 1984.

Grant Support

• NIH / NICHD, R01. 2/1/2007 - 1/31/2012.
  "Developmental defects in serotonin neurons and the response to O2 and CO2."
  PI: George Richerson, MD, PhD
• NIH / NINDS, R01. 4/1/2002 –2/28/2012.
  "Non-vesicular GABA release via GABA transporter reversal."
  PI: George Richerson, MD, PhD
• NIH / NICHD, Program Project Grant. 4/1/2003 – 3/31/2013.
  PI on project: "Cellular Mechanisms of Serotonergic Neurons."
  PPG title: "The Ventral Medulla and the Sudden Infant Death Syndrome."
  PI: Hannah Kinney, MD. Children's Hospital, Boston & Harvard Medical School
• NIH K08 7/1/11-6/30/16
  PI: Gordon Buchanan, MD, PhD
  Role: Mentor
• Bumpus Foundation. 7/1/06 – 6/30/11
  "Degeneration of dopaminergic carotid body glomus cells in Parkinson's Disease."
  PI: George Richerson, MD, PhD
• NIH Pathway to Independence Award (K99) 7/1/09-6/30/11
  PI: Matthew Hodges, PhD
  Role: Mentor
• VAMC Special Neuroscience Fellowship 7/1/07-6/30/10
  Fellowship mentor for Chris Ransom, MD, PhD
  Role: Fellowship mentor
• VAMC Special Neuroscience Fellowship 7/1/08-6/30/11
  Fellowship mentor for Gordon Buchanan, MD, PhD
  Role: Fellowship mentor
• NIH Specialized Neuroscience Research Program 7/1/06-6/30/11
  PI: Michael Harris, PhD; University of Alaska Fairbanks
  Role: Collaborator
• Howard Hughes Medical Institute Student Fellowship 7/1/08-6/30/09
  Fellowship mentor for Yale Medical Student Sean McEvoy
  Role: Fellowship mentor

Professional Service

• American Epilepsy Society SUDEP Task Force 2009-
• NIH, College of CSR Reviewers, Center for Scientific Review, 2010-2012
• NIH, NTRC Study Section
  Chairman, 2006-2008; Permanent member, 2005-2008;
  Ad hoc member, 2003-2004, 2009
• Manuscript Reviewer: Science, Nature, Nature Neuroscience, J. Neuroscience, etc
• Editorial Boards, Journal of Applied Physiology, Respiratory Physiology & Neurobiology, and Journal of Neurophysiology
• Senior Appointments and Promotions Committee, Yale University School of Medicine. 2003-2004
• Consultant, NIH Specialized Neuroscience Research Program, Univ. Alaska Fairbanks
• Graduate Education Subcommittee, American Academy of Neurology. 2001-2004
• Examiner, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, Oral Boards. 2000-2003
• Admissions Committee, Interdepartmental Neuroscience PhD Program. Yale Univ. 1997-2002

Professional Societies

• Society for Neuroscience
• American Neurological Association
• American Physiological Society
• American Academy of Neurology
• American Epilepsy Society

Invited Lectures

• Symposium Speaker.  "A little warm milk with your Dilantin? Serotonin and translational models of SUDEP." Integrated Neuroscience Session.
  Child Epilepsy: Bench to Bedside. American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting.  Honolulu, HI. 4/2011.
• Symposium speaker. "Unusual modes of GABA signaling in the developing and adult brain." Winter Conference on Current Issues in Developmental Psychobiology. Playa Herradura, Costa Rica. 1/2011.
• Plenary Speaker. "Neuromodulation of breathing by the 5-HT network." Scottish Young Physiologists Symposium, The Physiological Society. University of St Andrews, St Andrews, Scotland, 8/2010.
• Symposium speaker. "The serotonin axis: Shared mechanisms for epilepsy, depression and SUDEP" in: Merritt-Putnam Symposium "Epilepsy Spectrum Disorder: New Mechanisms for Complex Syndromes." American Epilepsy Society Annual Meeting. Boston, MA, 12/2009.
• Symposium chairman and speaker. "The new molecular genetics of serotonin neuron development and physiology." Society for Neuroscience Annual Meeting. Chicago, IL, 10/2009
• Symposium speaker. "Central chemosensitivity by 5-HT neurons" 11th Oxford Conference on Modeling and Control of Breathing. Nara, Japan. 8/2009.
• Seminar speaker. "Nonvesicular neurotransmission via GABA transporter reversal." Mediterranean Institute of Neurobiology (INMED). Marseilles, France. 12/2008.
• Symposium Chairman and Speaker. "Defects in breathing and thermoregulation in mice lacking serotonin neurons." World Sleep 2007. Cairns, Australia. 9/2007
• Symposium Chairman and Speaker. "Advances in the serotonin system – new insights into the pathogenesis of psychiatric disorders." European College of Neuropsychopharmacology. Amsterdam, The Netherlands. 10/2005
• Meeting Co-Organizer, "Role of Serotonin in the CNS." Neurochemistry Winter Conference. Sölden, Austria. 4/2003

Publications

• Ray, R., A. Corcoran, R. Brust, J. C. Kim, G.B. Richerson, E.E. Nattie & S. M. Dymecki. Homeostatic imbalance upon acute in vivo serotonergic neuron inhibition.  Science 333(6042): 637-642, 2011.
• Richerson, G.B. & G.F. Buchanan. The serotonin axis:  Shared mechanisms in seizures, depression, and SUDEP. Epilepsia 52 (Suppl 1):28-38, 2011.
• Buchanan, G.F. & G.B. Richerson. Central serotonin neurons are required for arousal to CO2. P.N.A.S.  107(37): 16354-9, 2010.
• Ransom, C.B. Y. Wu & G.B. Richerson. Postdepolarization Potentiation of GABAA Receptors: A Novel Mechanism Regulating Tonic Conductance in Hippocampal Neurons. J Neurosci 30(22):7672-7684, 2010.
• Bravata, D.M., J. Concato, T. Fried, N. Ranjbar, T. Sadarangani, V. McClain, F. Struve, L. Zygmunt, H.J. Knight, A.C. Lo, George B Richerson, Mark Gorman, Linda S. Williams, Lawrence M Brass, Joseph Agostini, Vahid Mohsenin, Francoise Roux, and H Klar Yaggi. Auto-Titrating Continuous Positive Airway Pressure for Patients With AcuteTransient Ischemic Attack. A Randomized Feasibility Trial. Stroke 41, 2010.
• Richerson, G.B. The autonomic nervous system. In: Textbook of Medical Physiology, 2nd Edition, Edited by Boulpaep, E. and W.F. Boron . WB Saunders, Co, New York, NY. 2009.
• Hodges, M.R., M. Wehner, J. Aungst, J.C. Smith & G.B. Richerson. Transgenic mice lacking serotonin neurons have severe apnea and high mortality during development. J Neurosci 29(33):10341-10349, 2009.
• Ptak, K., T. Yamanishi, J. Aungst, L.S. Milescu, R. Zhang, G.B. Richerson & J.C. Smith. Raphé neurons stimulate respiratory circuit activity by multiple mechanisms via endogenously released serotonin and substance P. J Neurosci 29(12): 3720-37, 2009.
• Kinney, H.C., G.B. Richerson, S.M. Dymecki, R.A. Darnall & E.E. Nattie. The brainstem and serotonin in the sudden infant death syndrome. Annual Rev Pathol 4: 517-550, 2009.
• Hodges, M.R., G.J. Tattersall, M.B. Harris, S.D. McEvoy, D.N. Richerson, E.S. Deneris, R.L. Johnson, Z.F. Chen & G.B. Richerson. Defects in breathing and thermoregulation after genetic deletion of central serotonin neurons. J Neurosci 28(10): 2495-2505, 2008.
• Wu, Y., W. Wang, A. Diez-Sampedro & G.B. Richerson. Nonvesicular inhibitory neurotransmission via reversal of the GABA transporter GAT-1. Neuron 56(5): 851-65, 2007.
• Du, W., J.F. Bautista, H. Yang, A. Diez-Sampedro, S.A. You, L. Wang, P. Kotagal, H.O. Lüders, J. Shi, J. Cui, G.B. Richerson & Q. Wang. Calcium-sensitive potassium channelopathy in human epilepsy and paroxysmal movement disorder. Nature Genetics 37(7): 733-738, 2005.
• Richerson, G.B. Serotonergic neurons as carbon dioxide sensors that maintain pH homeostasis. Nature Reviews Neuroscience 5:449-461, 2004.
• Richerson, G.B. & J.M. Bekkers. Learning to take a deep breath â€" with BDNF. Nature Medicine 10(1):25-26, 2004.
• Richerson, G.B. & Y. Wu. Role of the GABA transporter in epilepsy. Adv Exp Med Biol 548: 76-91, 2004.
• Severson, C.A., W. Wang, V.A. Pieribone, C.I. Dohle & G.B. Richerson. Midbrain serotonergic neurons are central pH chemoreceptors. Nature Neurosci 6(11):1139-1140, 2003.
• Richerson, G.B. & Y. Wu. The dynamic equilibrium of neurotransmitter transporters: Not just for reuptake anymore. J Neurophysiol 90:1363-1374, 2003.
• Bradley, S. Risso, V. A. Pieribone, W. Wang, C.A. Severson, R. A. Jacobs & G. B. Richerson. Chemosensitive serotonergic neurons are intimately associated with large arteries of the ventral medulla. Nature Neurosci 5(5): 401-402, 2002.
• Bekkers, J.M., G.B. Richerson & C.F. Stevens. Origin of variability in quantal size in cultured hippocampal neurons and hippocampal slices. PNAS 87:5359-5362, 1990.
• Dekin, M.S., G.B. Richerson & P.A. Getting. Thyrotropin-releasing hormone induces rhythmic bursting in neurons of the nucleus tractus solitarius. Science 229:67-69, 1985.