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Associate Professor
Department of Neuroscience and
Center for Molecular Neurobiology
Ph.D.: King's College, University of London
Post-doctoral Training: Case Western Reserve University and Temple University
Center for Molecular Neurobiology
The Ohio State University
060 Rightmire Hall
1060 Carmack Road
Columbus, OH 43210
Phone: 614-292-1205
Fax: 614-292-5379
E-mail: Brown.2302@osu.edu
Lab Website: www.neurobiotech.ohio-state.edu/brownlab
Link to NLM & NIH PubMed publications list for Anthony Brown (last 10 years)
Research Area:
- Molecular mechanism of slow axonal transport
- Neuronal cytoskeleton and cell motility
Research Description:
Cytoskeletal and cytosolic proteins are synthesized in the cell body of nerve cells and transported out along the axons by slow axonal transport. This movement is essential for the growth and survival of axons and continues throughout the life of the neuron, but the mechanism is not known.
We are studying the axonal transport of cytoskeletal proteins in cultured nerve cells. We are particularly interested in neurofilaments, which are one of three classes of cytoskeletal polymers that comprise the neuronal cytoskeleton. Abnormalities in the axonal transport of neurofilaments are thought to underlie the etiology of a number of neurodegenerative diseases, most notably amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig's disease).
We have observed the movement of neurofilaments and microtubules in cultured nerve cells using time-lapse fluorescence imaging. Our data indicate that cytoskeletal proteins move as assembled polymers. The actual rate of movement is fast, approaching the rate of fast axonal transport, but the overall rate is slow because the rapid movements are interrupted by prolonged pauses.
Our long-term goal is to define the cargo structures that convey cytoskeletal and cytosolic proteins along axons, the motors that propel them, the tracks along which they move, and the mechanisms that regulate their movement. 
Techniques and Models:
- Microscopy
- Cell culture
- Biochemistry
- Molecular biology
- Transgenic mice
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