Friedbert Weiss, PhD

 Email

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Research Focus

Neurobiology of Drug and Alcohol Addiction.

Work in our laboratory is concerned with the neurobiological basis of abnormal behavioral and brain functions relevant to human psychopathology with emphasis on the neural control of motivation and reinforcement. The majority of this work is directed at the understanding of the neuropharmcological, neurocircuitry, and molecular basis of drug and alcohol addiction including mechanisms that lead to the development of dependence and withdrawal states, drug craving, relapse as well as impairment in memory and cognitive function.

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Education

Ph.D. (Biological Psychology), University of California, Santa Barbara, 1986
B.A. (Psychology), University of San Francisco, 1980
M.A. (Psychology), University of California, Santa Barbara, 1983

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Professional Experience

1986 - 1989 Postdoctoral Fellow, Research Institute of Scripps Clinic, Division of Preclinical Neuroscience and Endocrinology, La Jolla, CA.1988 / 1989 Visiting Scientist, Department of Pharmacology, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden.

1989 - 1993 Assistant Member, Department of Neuropharmacology, The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI), La Jolla, CA.

1994 - 1997 Associate Member, Department of Neuropharmacology, TSRI, La Jolla, CA.

1996 - 2002 Associate Adjunct Professor, Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego (UCSD), School of Medicine.

1997 - present, Faculty Member,Neurosciences Graduate Program, University of California, san Diego (UCSD).

1997 - 1999 Associate Professor, Department of Neuropharmacology, TSRI, La Jolla, CA.

1999 - 2005 Associate Professor with Tenure, Department of Neuropharmacology, TSRI, La Jolla, CA.

2004 - present Associate Director, The Pearson Center for Alcoholism and Addiction Research, TSRI, La Jolla, CA.

2005 - present Professor, Molecular and Integrative Neurosciences Department, TSRI, La Jolla, CA.

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Awards & Professional Activities

1989 National Institute on Drug Abuse MERIT Award, NIH/NIDA
2004 National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism FIRST Award, NIH/NIDA

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Selected Publications

Martin-Fardon, Remi; Zorrilla, Eric P.; Ciccocioppo, R.; Weiss, Friedbert Role of innate and drug-induced dysregulation of brain stress and arousal systems in addiction: Focus on corticotropin-releasing factor, nociceptin/orphanin FQ, and orexin/hypocretin. Brain Research 2010, 1314, 145-161.
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Dayas, C. V.; McGranahan, T. M.; Martin-Fardon, Remi; Weiss, Friedbert Stimuli linked to ethanol availability activate hypothalamic CART and orexin neurons in a reinstatement model of relapse. Biological Psychiatry 2008, 63, 152-157.
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Dayas, C. V.; Liu, X.; Simms, J. A.; Weiss, Friedbert Distinct patterns of neural activation associated with ethanol seeking: Effects of naltrexone. Biological Psychiatry 2007, 61, 979-989.
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Ciccocioppo, R.; Martin-Fardon, Remi; Weiss, Friedbert Stimuli associated with a single cocaine experience elicit longlasting cocaine-seeking. Nature Neuroscience 2004, 7, 495-496.
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Weiss, Friedbert Neurobiology of craving, conditioned reward and relapse. Current Opinion in Pharmacology 2005, 5, 9-19.
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Weiss, Friedbert; Porrino, L. J. Behavioral neurobiology of alcohol addiction: Recent advances and challenges. Journal of Neuroscience 2002, 22, 3332-3337.