Instructor: Ege Kavalali

How our body sends and receives messages to itself is at the core of many health concerns - ranging from memory loss to Parkinson’s to depression. This class is an opportunity to go back to the science classroom to learn about the nervous system offered by USN parent and Professor and Acting Chair of the Department of Pharmacology Dr. EGE KAVALALI. He will start with the importance of nerve cells, a.k.a. neurons, which are specialized in their ability to communicate with targets in the body (such as other neurons, muscles, glands) using chemical messengers called neurotransmitters. This communication occurs at the junctions between cells, called synapses. Changes in the strength of synapses enable neurons to process and store information, underlying important activities such as learning and memory. Because synapses form the basis of communication in the nervous system, they are also the primary targets of many drugs. This class will cover the history of our current understanding of synapses and the fundamental principles of neuronal communication.

Class Fee: $30.00

Age 21 and up.

Ege Kavalali, Ph.D.

As an undergraduate Dr. Kavalali studied Electrical Engineering at Bogazici University in Istanbul, Turkey. In 1995, he received his Ph.D. degree in Biomedical Engineering from Rutgers University. In 1999, he completed his postdoctoral studies at Stanford University in the Department of Molecular and Cellular Physiology. The same year, Dr. Kavalali joined the faculty at the Center for Basic Neuroscience at UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. After 19 years of service at UT Southwestern, in September 2018, Dr. Kavalali joined the Department of Pharmacology at Vanderbilt University as a Professor.