Scientists: Tallie Z. Baram, M.D., Ph.D.

Research Focus

Working to understand: (1) How the brain becomes epileptic (2) how early-life stress, enriched-experience or seizures result in enduring changes of hippocampal structure and function (learning and memory) (3) Mechanisms of resilience to stress-related disorders.

Scientific Focus: (a) Enduring neuroplasticity,via epigenetic programming and altered connectivity, of hippocampal and hypothalamic neurons that is induced by early life enriched-experience, stress or seizures. b) Febrile seizures and epilepsy: contributions of ion channel expression and trafficking, biomarkers of epileptogenesis, inflammation.

Selected/Recent Publications

Publications Listed on PubMed

McClelland S, Flynn C, Dubé C, Richichi C, Zha Q, Ghestem A, Esclapez M, Bernard C, Baram TZ.
Neuron-restrictive silencer factor-mediated hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide gated channelopathy in experimental temporal lobe epilepsy. Ann Neurol 2011.

McClelland S, Korosi A, Cope J, Ivy A, Baram TZ.
Emerging roles of epigenetic mechanisms in the enduring effects of early-life stress and experience on learning and memory. Neurobiol Learn Mem. 2011 Feb 19. [Epub ahead of print]

Vezzani A, French J, Bartfai T, Baram TZ. TThe role of inflammation in epilepsy. Nat Rev Neurol. 2010.

Ivy AS, Rex CS, Chen Y, Dubé C, Maras PM, Grigoriadis DE, Gall CM, Lynch G, Baram TZ.
Hippocampal dysfunction and cognitive impairments provoked by chronic early-life stress involve excessive activation of CRH receptors. J Neurosci. 2010 30:13005-15.

Chen Y, Rex CS, Rice CJ, Dubé CM, Gall CM, Lynch G, Baram TZ.
Correlated memory defects and hippocampal dendritic spine loss after acute stress involve corticotropin-releasing hormone signaling. PNAS. 2010 107:13123-8.

Dubé CM, Ravizza T, Hamamura M, Zha Q, Keebaugh A, Fok K, Andres AL, Nalcioglu O, Obenaus A, Vezzani A, Baram TZ.
Epileptogenesis provoked by prolonged experimental febrile seizures: mechanisms and biomarkers. J Neurosci. 2010 30:7484-94.

Noam Y, Zha Q, Phan L, Wu RL, Chetkovich DM, Wadman WJ, Baram TZ. Trafficking and surface expression of HCN channels in hippocampal neurons. J Biol Chem. 2010 285:14724-36.

Korosi A, Shanabrough M, McClelland S, Liu ZW, Borok E, Gao XB, Horvath TL, Baram TZ. Early-life experience reduces excitation to stress-responsive hypothalamic neurons and reprograms the expression of CRH. J Neurosci. 2010 30:703-13.

Joëls M, Baram TZ. The neuro-symphony of stress. Nat Rev Neurosci. 2009 Apr 2.

Dubé CM, Brewster AL, Richichi C, Zha Q, Baram TZ. Fever, febrile seizures and epilepsy. Trends Neurosci. 2007 30:490-6.

Santoro B, Baram TZ. The multiple personalities of h-channels. Trends Neurosci. 2003 26:550-4.