Education

2003
Bachelor of Science, Psychology
Indiana University Purdue University at Indianapolis-Indianapolis, IN

2009
Doctorate, Neurobiology
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill-Chapel Hill, NC

2009-2014
Postdoctoral Fellowship
Department of Molecular Physiology & Biophysics
Vanderbilt University-Nashville, TN

Publications

Bertagna NB, Holmgren EB, Engi SA, Ha L, Cruz FC, Albrechet-Souza L, Wills TA (2024). BNST CRF receptor type 1 modulates mechanical hypersensitivity induced by adolescent alcohol exposure in adult female mice. Psychopharmacology (Berl). 2024 Dec;241(12):2513-2523. doi: 10.1007/s00213-024-06693-8. Epub 2024 Sep 30.

Albrechet-Souza L, Kasten CR, Bertagna NB, Wills TA (2024). Sex-Specific Negative Affect-Like Behavior and Parabrachial Nucleus Activation Induced by BNST Stimulation in Adult Mice with Adolescent Alcohol History. Addiction Biology. Feb;29(2):e13366.

Bertagna NB, Wilson L, Bailey CK, Cruz FC, Albrechet-Souza L, Wills TA (2024). Long-lasting mechanical hypersensitivity and CRF receptor type-1 neuron activation in the BNST following adolescent ethanol exposure. Alcohol Clin Exp Res, Jan;48(1):48-57.

Secci ME, Kelley LK, Avegno EM, Holmgren EB, Chen L, Rein SL, Engi SA, Quinlan V, Wilson L, Gilpin NW, Wills TA (2024). Adolescent alcohol exposure produces long-term hyperalgesia via changes in central amygdala circuit function in male but not female rats. Biological Psychaitry. Feb 1;95(3):207-219.

Belmonte KCD, Holmgren EB, Wills TA, Gidday JM (2022). Epigenetic conditioning induces intergenerational resilience to dementia in a mouse model of vascular cognitive impairment. Alzheimers Dement. Oct;18(10):1711-1720.

Research

http://willslab.org/

The Wills lab is focused on understanding the neuroadaptations that occur in alcohol dependence, particularly those produced by adolescent alcohol use. To do this, we utilize a wide range of techniques that include electrophysiology, proteomics, and behavioral analysis using a rodent model of alcohol dependence. Much of our work evaluates alcohol-induced changes in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST), a region critical for relapse. Further, our studies in this region have highlighted a key role of NMDA receptor signaling in alcohol’s effects.

Below are brief summaries of our current projects:

1.  Adolescent Alcohol Use

This research will evaluate the dynamic regulation of NMDAR subunit composition and signaling during adolescence, which is a population vulnerable to      alcohol addiction. In adults, GluN2B-NMDAR signaling is highly regulated by alcohol in the BNST. Previous work in the BNST demonstrated that NMDAR transmission is uniquely altered by alcohol. Future studies will utilize a combination of electrophysiology and proteomics to explore alcohol-induced changes in NMDAR function and signaling following adolescent alcohol exposure.

2.  NMDA Receptor Trafficking

This work will examine the mechanisms by which withdrawal from chronic alcohol exposure relocalizes NMDA receptors from synaptic to extrasynaptic domains. Our pervious work finds that GluN2B-NMDA receptors dissociate from PSD scaffolding proteins during alcohol withdrawal. Future work will further evaluate these mechanisms and determine how NMDA receptor relocation may alter signaling.