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Charles D. Nichols, PhDProfessor of Pharmacology
Lab Web Page
1901 Perdido Street
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Education |
BS: Purdue University, Biology/Biochemistry PhD: Carnegie Mellon University, Biological Sciences Postdoctoral: Vanderbilt University Pharmacology |
Research Interests |
1) Functional Selectivty of 5-HT2A receptor ligands at their target receptor to design new chemical entities with better therapeutic potential. 2) 5-HT2A receptor agonists as potent anti-inflamamtory drugs and their development for clinical use. 3) The neuropharmacology of serotonin 5-HT2A receptor agonists (psychedelics) in mammalian and Drosophila systems towards generating a mechanismstic understanding of therapeutic efficacy to treat psychiatric disorders. |
News |
In September, 2020, Dr. Nichols was elected "President Elect" of the International Society for Research on Psychedelics (ISRP). Our most recent high profile publication deliniating the structure/function realtionships between psychedelics and anti-nflammatory and behavioral effects had a nice writeup in Fierce Biotech. Here is another on in the Psychedelic Review. Our work was featured in the EndPoints article "How do depressed rats respond to psychedelics? New data offer insight into the human experience." Our publication "Psychedelics, but not ketamine, produce persistent antidepressant-like effects in a rodent experimental system for the study of depression" was chosen as an Editors Choice by ACS Chemical Neuroscience. As of May 2020 after only two months there are nearly 12,000 views! According to a recent analysis performed by Clarivate Analytics and presented in LSU Research (2019-2020), Dr. Nichols was the most highly cited researcher in the state-wide LSU system in 2019! In two recent publications (Fall 2019) we have demonstrated potent anti-inflamamtory effects of psychedelics for therapeutic efficacy in models for vascular and metabolic disease, and asthma. A nice writeup on one of these studies can be found in Endpoints News. In October 2019, Dr. Nichols was lead organizer for the innaugural meeting of the International Society for Research on Psychedelics in New Orleans. This first of its kind meeting for and by scientists brought leaders in the field together from around the world to present breaking research. Dr. Nichols and his father were featured on the NPR program "The Peoples Pharmacy" on Nov 9, 2019 discussing psychedelic medicine.
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PUBLICATIONS
Flanagan, T.W., Billac, G.B., Landry, A.L., Sebastian, M.N., Cormier, S.A. and Nichols, C.D. (2020) Structure-activity relationship analysis of psychedelics in a rat model of asthma reveals the anti- inflamamtory pharmacophore. ACS Pharmacol. Transl. Sci. Hibicke, M., Talman, Z., Kramer, H, and Nichols, C.D.(2020) Psychedelics, but not ketamine, produce persistent antidepressant-like effects in a rodent experimental system for the study of depression. ACS Chem Neurosci. 11, 6, 864–871. Sexton, J.D., Nichols, C.D., and Hendricks, P.S. (2020). Population Survey Data Informing the Therapeutic Potential of Classic and Novel Phenethylamine, Tryptamine, and Lysergamide Psychedelics. Front Psychiatry. 10:896 https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2019.00896 Flanagan, T. W., Sebastian, M. N., Battaglia, D. M., Foster, T. P., Cormier, S. A., & Nichols, C. D. (2019). 5-HT2 receptor activation alleviates airway inflammation and structural remodeling in a chronic mouse asthma model. Life Sci, 236, 116790. Flanagan, T.W., Sebastian, M.N., Battaglia, D.M., Foster, T.P., Maillet, E.L., and Nichols, C.D. (2019). Activation of 5-HT2 Receptors Reduces Inflammation in Vascular Tissue and Cholesterol Levels in High-Fat Diet-Fed Apolipoprotein e Knockout Mice. Scientific Reports, 9(1), 1–10. Kuypers KP, Ng L, Erritzoe D, Knudsen GM, Nichols CD, Nichols DE, Pani L, Soula A, Nutt D. (2019). Microdosing psychedelics: More questions than answers? An overview and suggestions for future research. J Psychopharmacol. Jul 14:269881119857204. PMID31303095. Flanagan, T.W., and Nichols C.D. (2018). Psychedlics as anti-inflammatory agents. IntRevPsychiatry, (13) 1-13. Martin, D.A., and Nichols, C.D. (2018). The effects of hallucinogens on gene expression. Behavioral Neurobiology of Hallucinogens, Entactogens, and Psychomimetics / Current topics in Behavioral Neurosciences. (Vol. 20, pp. 92–22). Berlin, Heidelberg: Springer Berlin Heidelberg. Kayzar, E.J., Nichols C.D., Gainetdinov, R.R., Nichols, D.E., and Kalueff, A.V. (2017) Psychedelic Drugs in Biomedicine. Trends in Pharmacological Sciences. in press. Martin, D., Xu, J., Porretta, C., & Nichols, C. D. (2017). Neurocytometry: Flow Cytometric Sorting of Specific Neuronal Populations from Human and Rodent Brain. ACS Chemical Neuroscience, 8(2), 356–367. Nichols, D.E., Johnson, M.W., and Nichols, C.D. (2017) Psychedelics as Emerging Medicines: An Emerging new paradigm. Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics. 101(2), 209–219. Martin, D.A., and Nichols, C.D. (2016) Psychedelics recruit multiple cellular types and produce complex transcriptional responses within the brain. EBioMedicine (a new journal from a collaboration between Cell and Lancet) 11, 262–277. Nau, F.J., Miller, J. Saravia, J., Ahlert, T., Yu, B., Happel, K, Cormier, S.A. and Nichols, C.D. (2015). Serotonin 5-HT2 receptor activation prevents allergic asthma in mouse model. Am J Physol Lung Cell Mol Physiol. Jan 15;308(2):L191-8. PMCID: PMC4338938 Martin D.A., Marona-Lewicka D., Nichols D.E., and Nichols CD (2014). Chronic LSD alters gene expression profiles in the mPFC relevant to schizophrenia. Neuropharmacology doi:10.1016/j.neuropharm.2014.03.013. Majeed, Z.R., Nichols, C.D., and Cooper, R.L. (2013). 5-HT stimulation of heart rate in Drosophila does not act through cAMP as revealed by pharmacogenetics. Journal of Applied Physiology. 115 (11):1656-65. PMCID: PMC3882742. Nau*, F.J., Yu*, B., , Martin, D., and Nichols, C.D. (2013) Serotonin 5-HT2A Receptor Activation Blocks TNF-α Mediated Inflammation in vivo. PLoS One. 8 (10):e75426. PMCID: PMC3788795. Becnel, J., Johnson, O., Tran, Majeed, Z., V., Yu, B., Roth, B.L., Cooper, R.L., and C.D. Nichols (2013). A pharmacogenetic approach for robustly controlling behavior, neuronal signaling, and physiology in Drosophila. Cell Reports. 4(5): 1049-1059. PMCID: PMC3889141. Daigle, J.G., Lanson, Jr, N.A., Smith, R., Casci, I., Maltare, A., Monaghan, J., Nichols , C.D., Kryndushkin, D., Shewmaker, F., and Pandey, U.B. (2013). RNA binding ability of FUS regulates neurodegeneration, cytoplasmic mislocalization and incorporation into stress granules associated with FUS carrying ALS-linked mutations. Hum. Mol. Genet 22(6):1193-205. Dong, C., Nichols, C.D., Guo, J., Huang, W., Lambert, N.A., and Wu, G. (2012). A triple arg motif mediates α(2B)-adrenergic receptor interaction with Sec24C/D and export. Traffic13, 857–868 Dong, C., C.D. Nichols, Guo, J., Huang, W., Lambert, N.A., and G. Wu (2012). A Triple Arg Motif Mediates ?2B-Adrenergic Receptor Interaction with Sec24C/D and Export. Traffic. In Press. Johnson, O, J. Becnel, and C.D. Nichols (2011). Serotonin receptor activity is required for normal learning and memory in Drosophila melanogaster. Neuroscience. Becnel, J., O. Johnson, J. Luo, D. Nässel, and C.D. Nichols (2011). The serotonin Duvernay M.T., Dong C., Zhang X., Zhou F., Nichols C.D., G. Wu (2009). Anterograde trafficking of G protein-coupled receptors: function of the C-terminal F(X)6LL motif in export from the endoplasmic reticulum. Molecular Pharmacology. 75:751-61. Johnson, O, J. Becnel, and C.D. Nichols (2011). Serotonin receptor activity is required for normal learning and memory in Drosophila melanogaster. Neuroscience. Nichols, C.D. (2006). Drosophila melanogaster neurobiology, neuropharmacology, and how the fly can inform CNS drug discovery. 2006. Pharmacology and Therapeutics. 112(3):677-700. Behan, K.J., Fair, J., Sing, S., Bogwitz, M., Perry, T., Grubor, V., Cunningham, F., Nichols, C.D., Cheung, T., Batterham, P., and J.A. Pollock. (2005). Alternative splicing removes an Ets interaction domain from Lozenge during Drosophila eye development. Development Genes and Evolution. 215(8):423-35. Nichols, C.D., and E. Sanders-Bush (2004). Molecular genetic responses to lysergic acid diethylamide include transcriptional activation of MAP Kinase Phosphatase-1, C/EBP-, and ILAD-1, a novel gene with homology to arrestins. Journal of Neurochemistry, Aug;90(3):576-84. Nichols, C.D., E.E. Garcia, and E. Sanders-Bush (2003). Dynamic changes in prefrontal cortex gene expression following lysergic acid diethylamide administration. Molecular Brain Research, 111: 182-188. Nichols, C.D., J. Ronesi, W. Pratt, and E. Sanders-Bush (2002). Hallucinogens and Drosophila: Linking serotonin receptor activation to behavior. Neuroscience, 115: 979-984. Nichols, C.D. and E. Sanders-Bush 2002). A single dose of lysergic acid diethylamide influences gene expression patterns within the mammalian brain. Neuropsychopharmacology, 26(5): 634-42. Behan, K. J., C.D. Nichols, T. Cheung, J. Fair, B. Hogan, P. Batterham, and J. A. Pollock (2002). Yan regulates Lozenge through an eye specific enhancer in Drosophila. Development Genes and Evolution, 212:267–276. É. L. S Loreto, A. Zaha, C. Nichols, J. A. Pollock, and V. L. S. Valente (1998). Characterization of a hypermutable strain of Drosophila simulans.CMLS, Cell and Molecular Life Sciences. 54: pp 1283-1290. Pollock, J.A., A. Assaf, A. Peretz, C.D. Nichols, M.H. Mojet, R.C. Hardie, and B. Minke (1995). TRP, a Protein Essential for Inositide-Mediated Ca2+ Influx Is Localized Adjacent to the Calcium Stores in Drosophila Photoreceptors. Journal of Neuroscience, 15(5):3747-3760. |