Seminar, Kathleen Hoffman, Modeling the Melanopsin Phototran
Host: Dr. Phyllis Robinson
Location
Biological Sciences : 004
Date & Time
March 25, 2015, 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Description
Please join us for a seminar presented by Kathleen Hoffman, Ph.D., from the Department of Mathematics and Statistics, UMBC, titled "Modeling the Melanopsin Phototransuction Cascade."
Abstract:
Melanopsin is a recently discovered photopigment found in intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells (ipRGCs) and is involved in non-image forming vision, such as circadian rhythm entrainment and the pupillary light reflex. We model the activation and inactivation of the melanopsin phototransduction cascade, and compare the model simulations to experimental data. The research was conducted by undergraduates at UMBC and funded by an NSF undergraduate training grant.