Venton Lab
Principal Investigator: B. Jill Venton
Institution: University of Virginia (Charlottesville, VA)
Primary Subfield: Neuroscience
Recruitment Status: ✅ Accepting PhD Students ✅ Hiring Postdocs
Research Focus
PROJECT SUMMARY How does chemical signaling in the brain control function? Answering this question requires fast sensors to measure at the synapse. Fast-scan cyclic voltammetry (FSCV) at carbon-fiber microelectrodes (CFMEs) has enabled in vivo detection of neuromodulators. However, most sensors are too big to measure at the synapse and there are challenges to distinguish neurochemicals and monitor multiple neuromodulators simultaneously. Thus, new sensor technology is needed to target the synapse and measure multiple neuromodulators in real- time. In the previous period, our lab developed new approaches to electrode development, including testing new carbon nanomaterials and 3D printing nanolithography. However, these methods have not been customized to meet the experimental requirements for emerging applications in neurochemical research. The goal of this project is to develop customized carbon electrodes and tune their properties for applications at the synapse, including (1) nanoelectrodes for monoamine detection in the Drosophila neuromuscular junction (NMJ) synapse, (2) trapping electrodes for highly sensitive and selective measurements of neuropeptides in Drosophila NMJ, and…
Active NIH Awards
- 5R01NS125663-09: Tunable Carbon Electrodes for in vivo Neurotransmitter Detection (2026)
- 5R01MH085159-15: Real-Time Measurements of Neurotransmission in Drosphilia melanogaster (2026)
- 5R01MH137467-03: A Portable, Low-Cost, Pont-of-care Microfluidic System for Rapid Pharmacogenomic Screening of Patients with Major Depressive Disorder (2026)
- 5R01NS121014-05: Multiplexed neurochemical methods to understand adenosine neuromodulation (2026)
- 5R01MH085159-14: Real-Time Measurements of Neurotransmission in Drosphilia melanogaster (2025)
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