Discovering

INDIVIDUAL RESEARCHER

Lindsay B. Hough , Ph.D.
Professor & Associate Director
e-mail: houghl@mail.amc.edu

Education

1978 - Ph.D. from University of Michigan

Current Research

Histamine is a chemical substance which performs many important roles in the body, including as a brain neurotransmitter. The primary interests of this laboratory are to characterize the biochemical and functional properties of histamine-containing neurons in the central nervous system. A major goal of this lab has been to understand the role of the histaminergic system in pain-relieving (analgesic) mechanisms. For example, work from this lab has shown that opiates like morphine act in part by the release of neuronal histamine. Recently, this work has led to the discovery of powerful new pain-relieving drugs that act independently of known opioid mechanisms. Current work on this project includes investigation of the mechanisms by which these drugs act, and development of this class of drugs for human use. Dr. Hough’s laboratory is also studying H₃ antagonists, which are being developed for the treatment of obesity and/or cognitive disorders.

References

1. Barnes, W.G., Grinde, E., Crawford, D.R., Herrick-Davis, K. and Hough, L.B., Characterization of a new mRNA species from the human histamine N-methyltransferase gene, Genomics 2004, 83:168-171



2. Nalwalk, J.W., Svokos, K., Taraschenko, O., Leurs, R., Timmerman, H. and Hough, L.B. Activation of brain stem nuclei by improgan, a non-opioid analgesic, Brain Res. 2004, 1021: 248-255.



3. Cannon, K.E. and Hough, L.B., Inhibition of chemical and low-intensity mechanical nociception by activation of histamine H3 receptors, J. Pain, 2005, 6: 193-200.



4. Hough, L.B., Nalwalk, J.W., Lu, Q., Shan, Z., Svokos, K., Wentland, M.P. and Montero, M.J., Antinociceptive, brain-penetrating derivatives related to improgan, a non-opioid analgesic, Eur. J. Pharmacology ,2005, in press.



5. Hough, L.B. and Leurs, R. "Histamine" in Basic Neurochemistry, 7th Ed., ed. G. Siegel, B. Agranoff, R. Albers, S. Fisher, and M. Uhler, Lippincott, Williams and Wilkins, 2005, in press.