Current Research:

My interest is in mechanisms that contribute to brain aging and cognitive decline. Recent studies have focused on the effects of gonadal hormones on brain aging and cognition, and the extent to which hormone therapy can be used to prevent or reduce Alzheimer's-related dementia and age-related cognitive decline. Using animal models, we have shown that estradiol treatment can have a multitude of positive effects on brain function, including improving cognitive performance, and even preventing or slowing age-related cognitive decline. However, our research suggests that these effects are also task specific and decrease with age. In addition, the effects can depend on the dose, regimen, and timing of treatment relative to age and loss of ovarian function. Recent work stems from the hypothesis that many of these effects are mediated by the ability of estradiol to enhance cholinergic projections from the basal forebrain to the hippocampal formation and cerebral cortex. Current studies are evaluating the feasibility of using cholinesterase inhibitors to restore estradiol effects on cognitive performance in aged rats, as well the circuits affected by estradiol treatment and the mechanisms by which estradiol affects basal forebrain cholinergic function.

Bio:

Robert Gibbs is a Professor of Pharmaceutical Sciences and of Cell Biology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Pharmacy. He received a BS in Neuroscience, and a BA in Philosophy from the University of Rochester in 1981, and a Ph.D. in Biological Sciences from the University of California, Irvine in 1987. His research focuses on the role of gonadal hormones in the regulation of cholinergic neurons, brain aging, and cognition. Current studies focus on the role of basal forebrain cholinergic neurons in specific cognitive processes, and on the ability of gonadal hormones to reduce age-related cognitive decline. His research has been continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health or the National Science Foundation for over 15 years. He has served as an ad hoc reviewer for several NIH study sections, as a reviewer for over a dozen scientific journals, and has published over 70 scientific papers, book chapters, and reviews. He is co-editor of the book “Hormones, Cognition and Dementia: State of the Art and Emergent Therapeutic Strategies” soon to be released by Cambridge University Press. Memberships include the Society for Neuroscience, the Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology, and the American Association of Colleges of Pharmacy.