Edward M. Stricker, Ph.D.
University Professor, Neuroscience- Ph.D. Yale University (1965)
- Office: 479 Crawford Hall
- Telephone:412-624-4569
- Fax:412-624-9198
- E-mail: edstrick@pitt.edu
- Website:
Central control of homeostatic regulatory systems.
Research Summary:
Professor Stricker and his research group examine the behavioral and biological mechanisms that subserve water and sodium homeostasis and thereby help to maintain stability in the internal environment. For example, studies of thirst and salt appetite consider how water and NaCl intake interact to influence body fluid balance, how they are controlled by hormonal and neural systems, and how they are complemented by physiological mechanisms of fluid conservation. The function of the gastrointestinal tract in providing early signals that stimulate or inhibit the physiological and behavioral responses to fluid imbalance has been a specific focus in recent years. Parallel studies have investigated the biological bases of hunger and satiety.
Of particular interest are the contributions of the caudal brainstem, the hypothalamus, and the circumventricular organs to the central control of homeostatic regulatory systems. For example, ongoing studies consider the roles of the area postrema and the nucleus of the solitary tract in the control of neurohypophyseal hormone secretion and fluid ingestion in response to osmotic dehydration, hypovolemia, or arterial hypotension.
Selected Publications:
Smith, C.A., Curtis, K.S., Smith, J.C., and Stricker, E.M. Presystemic influences on thirst, salt appetite, and vasopressin secretion in the hypovolemic rat. Amer. J. Physiol. 292: R2089-R2099, 2007.
Stricker, E.M., Bushey, M.A., Hoffmann, M.L., McGhee, M., Cason, A.M., and Smith, J.C. Inhibition of NaCl appetite when DOCA-treated rats drink saline. Amer. J. Physiol. 292: R652-R662, 2007.
Manesh R., Hoffmann, M.L., and Stricker, E.M. Water ingestion by rats fed high-salt diet may be mediated, in part, by visceral osmoreceptors. Amer. J. Physiol. 290: R1742-R1749, 2006.
Hoffmann, M.L., DenBleyker, M., Smith, J.C., and Stricker, E.M. Inhibition of thirst when dehydrated rats drink water or saline. Amer. J. Physiol. 290: R1199-R1207, 2006.
Stricker, E.M. and Hoffmann, M.L. Inhibition of vasopressin secretion when dehydrated rats drink water. Amer. J. Physiol. 289: R1238-R1243, 2005.
Stricker, E.M. Thirst. In: Handbook of Behavioral Neurobiology, volume
14, Food and Fluid Intake, edited by Stricker, E.M., and Woods, S.C. New York: Kluwer Academic/Plenum, pp. 505-543, 2004