Chromatin remodeling and the acute behavioral response to alcohol

The genes that control an individual's initial sensitivity to the effects of alcohol strongly influence the development of alcohol dependence, but are poorly understood. Recent data from human population studies has implicated chromatin remodeling complexes in the liability to develop alcohol dependence. This project uses the genetically tractable animal model Caenorhabditis elegans to investigate how chromatin remodeling complexes regulate ethanol responses with an emphasis on identifying genes that influence how neurons respond to alcohol.