Nicholas Brecha

About

Nicholas Brecha, PhD, is a Distinguished Professor in the Neurobiology Department at the University of California, Los Angeles. His major research interest is concerned with understanding the functional organization of the mammalian retina by elucidating its morphology and neurochemistry. His investigations focus on defining the microcircuitry of the inner retina, evaluating the neurochemical organization and regulation of both its fast (amino acid) and slow (peptide) transmitter systems, and studying the function of bipolar, amacrine, and ganglion cell populations, which are major retinal cell types that play critical roles in visual information processing. Recent research conducted by Dr. Brecha has been centered on peptide-containing cell populations, including the cellular expression patterns of tachykinin, somatostatin, neuropeptide Y, and opiate receptors, as well as their functional roles in modulating bipolar cell responsiveness. Morphological studies have shown that peptide receptor subtypes are selectively expressed by different populations of bipolar, amacrine, and ganglion cells, providing important insights into the organization of retinal microcircuits mediating various aspects of vision and the sites of action of retinal transmitter substances. Over the past three years, he has developed a new research direction focused on determining the function of peptides in the retina, particularly how they modulate cellular responsiveness and influence ion channels and…

Research topics

• Genetics
• Cell biology
• Biology
• Neuroscience

Selected publications

• Elevating Growth Factor Responsiveness and Axon Regeneration by Modulating Presynaptic Inputs

  Neuron · 2019-05-20 · 139 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Brainwide Genetic Sparse Cell Labeling to Illuminate the Morphology of Neurons and Glia with Cre-Dependent MORF Mice

  Neuron · 2020 · 74 citations

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Dopamine-Dependent Sensitization of Rod Bipolar Cells by GABA Is Conveyed through Wide-Field Amacrine Cells

  Journal of Neuroscience · 2017-12-07 · 41 citations

  articleOpen access

  The vertebrate retina has the remarkable ability to support visual function under conditions of limited illumination, including the processing of signals evoked by single photons. Dim-light vision is regulated by several adaptive mechanisms. The mechanism explored in this study is responsible for increasing the light sensitivity and operational range of rod bipolar cells, the retinal neurons operating immediately downstream of rod photoreceptors. This sensitization is achieved through the sustai…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Multiple cell types form the VIP amacrine cell population

  The Journal of Comparative Neurology · 2017-05-04 · 38 citations

  articleSenior authorCorresponding

  Abstract Amacrine cells are a heterogeneous group of interneurons that form microcircuits with bipolar, amacrine and ganglion cells to process visual information in the inner retina. This study has characterized the morphology, neurochemistry and major cell types of a VIP‐ires‐Cre amacrine cell population. VIP‐tdTomato and ‐Confetti (Brainbow2.1) mouse lines were generated by crossing a VIP‐ires‐Cre line with either a Cre‐dependent tdTomato or Brainbow2.1 reporter line. Retinal sections and whol…

  PublisherDOI

• Prox1 Is a Marker for AII Amacrine Cells in the Mouse Retina

  Frontiers in Neuroanatomy · 2017-05-05 · 36 citations

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  The transcription factor Prox1 is expressed in multiple cells in the retina during eye development. This study has focused on neuronal Prox1 expression in the inner nuclear layer (INL) of the adult mouse retina. Prox1 immunostaining was evaluated in vertical retinal sections and whole mount preparations using a specific antibody directed to the C-terminus of Prox1. Strong immunostaining was observed in numerous amacrine cell bodies and in all horizontal cell bodies in the proximal and distal INL…

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• Horizontal cell signaling in the mammalian retina

  NIH · $2.8M · 2019–2024

• Transmitter Release from Mammalian Horizontal Cells

  NIH · $4.9M · 2005–2018

• Regulation of Calcium Signaling in Retinal Ganglion Cells after Nerve Injury

  NIH · 2011–2020

Frequent coauthors

• Steven Barnes

  Doheny Eye Institute

  137 shared

• Arlene A. Hirano

  117 shared

• Catia Sternini

  111 shared

• Harvey J. Karten

  University of California, San Diego

  58 shared

• Luis Pérez de Sevilla Müller

  University of California, Los Angeles

  45 shared

• S Stella

  Penn State Milton S. Hershey Medical Center

  44 shared

• Allison Sargoy

  Doheny Eye Institute

  37 shared

• Roberto De Giorgio

  33 shared

Labs

• Neurobiology Department UCLAPI

Similar researchers at University of California, Los Angeles

• V. Reggie Edgertonh-115
• Mirella Daprettoh-84
• Alan Garfinkelh-83