Research Interests

My research focuses on understanding the neural circuitry that underlies different maternal behaviors in rodents. In a wide range of mammals, including humans, bears, cats, dogs and mice, mothers are highly protective when their offspring are young and vulnerable. As part of this protective behavior, lactating females will often express a fierce attack against a larger male intruder in a behavior termed maternal aggression. What is remarkable is that the females can quickly express this fierce aggression against an intruder immediately after exhibiting gentle nurturance towards the offspring. Although maternal aggression plays a critical role in the perpetuation of species and offspring, it has received relatively little research attention. The present focus of my lab work is to understand the genetic, hormonal, and neural basis of maternal aggression. I am also interested in examining the neuroendocrine basis of other maternal behaviors, such as pup retrieval and nest building. Researchers in my lab will be given the opportunity to participate in on-going studies and/or initiate independent projects.

My work uses a strong comparative approach. Although I have used multiple rodent species for my studies, I am currently focusing on outbred mice and some specific transgenic lines of mice. The general approach in the laboratory is to use multiple levels of analysis to gain insights into how neural circuitry controls behavior. The techniques used in the lab include behavioral testing, immunohistochemistry, cannulae (for direct testing of neuromodulators on behavior), pharmacological techniques, anatomical techniques, and analysis of gene expression in subregions of the brain using gene arrays.

     Undergraduate students, graduate students, and postdoctoral fellows interested in working in the lab should contact me. I have funds for a postdoctoral position for one year. All postdoctoral fellows will be encouraged to apply for independent grants. For more information on the lab, visit the lab website: http://www.zoology.wisc.edu/faculty/Gam/SCGwebpage.html

Teaching

Courses:

Zoology 152:   Introductory Biology (Physiology unit)
Zoology 611:   Comparative and Evolutionary Physiology
Zoology 612:   Comparative and Evolutionary Physiology Lab
Zoology 950:   Interdisciplinary Seminar in Animal Behavior
Zoology 962/Neuroscience 675:   Seminar: Neuroethology


Note to Prospective Graduate Students:

I am looking for graduate students who can work independently and have a strong enthusiasm for research and discovery. The aim of the lab is to help train graduate students so that they have the tools necessary to either run their own lab or pusue other careers in science.

Graduate Students Currently Supervised:

Nina S. Hasen (nshasen@wisc.edu)
Nina is interested in examining what changes in the brain occur when moving from a virgin to a lactating female and how those changes support maternal behaviors, including maternal aggression.

Kimberly D’Anna, (kldanna@wisc.edu)
Kimberly is examining the role of peptides related to CRF and the arousal peptide, hypocretin, in maternal behaviors, including maternal aggression.

Grace Lee, (glee1@wisc.edu)
Grace is interested in examining GABA signaling in maternal aggression and other behaviors.

Students supervised who've recently earned graduate degrees:

Justin S. Rhodes, Ph.D. - Zoology. 2002.
The neural basis of hyperactive wheel running in mice.

Selected Publications

Lee G, Gammie SC (2007). GABA enhancement of maternal defense in mice: possible neural correlates. Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Behavior, (in press).

Gammie SC, Stevenson SA (2006). Effects of daily and acute restraint stress during lactation on maternal aggression and behavior in mice. Stress, 9:171-180.

Gammie SC, Auger AP, Jessen HM, Vanzo RJ, Awad TA, Stevenson SA (2006). Altered gene expression in mice selected for high maternal aggression. Genes, Brain and Behavior, (in press).

Hasen, NS, Gammie SC (2006). Maternal aggression: new insights from Egr-1. Brain Research, 1108:147-156.

D’Anna KD, Gammie SC (2006). Hypocretin-1 dose-dependently modulates maternal behaviour in mice. Journal of Neuroendocrinology, 18:553-566.

Gammie SC, Garland T, Stevenson SA (2006). Artificial selection for increased maternal defense behavior in mice. Behavior Genetics, 36:713-722.

Gammie SC, Stevenson SA (2006). Intermale aggression in corticotropin-releasing factor receptor 1 deficient mice. Behavioural Brain Research, 171:63-69.

Gammie SC (2005). Current models and future directions for understanding the neural circuitries of maternal behaviors in rodents. Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience Reviews, 4:119-135.

Gammie SC, Hasen NS Awad TA, Auger AP, Jessen HM, Panksepp JB, Bronikowski AM (2005). Gene array profiling of large hypothalamic CNS regions in lactating and randomly cycling virgin mice. Brain Research. Molecular Brain Research, 139:201-211.

D’Anna KL, Stevenson SA, Gammie SC (2005). Urocortin 1 and 3 impair maternal defense behavior in mice. Behavioral Neuroscience, 119:1061-1071.

Friske JE, Gammie SC (2005). Environmental enrichment alters plus maze, but not maternal defense performance in mice. Physiology and Behavior, 85:187-194.

Hasen NS, Gammie SC (2005). Differential fos activation in virgin and lactating mice in response to an intruder. Physiology and Behavior, 84:681-695.

Gammie SC, Hasen NS, Stevenson SA, Bale TL, D’Anna KL (2005). Elevated stress sensitivity in corticotropin-releasing factor receptor 2 deficient mice decreases maternal, but not intermale aggression. Behavioural Brain Research, 160:169-177.

Rhodes JS, Gammie SC, Garland T (2005). Neurobiology of mice selected for high voluntary wheel-running activity. Integrative and Comparative Biology, 45:438-455.

Gammie SC, Nelson RJ (2005). High maternal aggression in dwarf hamsters (Phodopus campbelli and P. sungorus). Aggressive Behavior, 31:294-302.

Smith GT, Allen AR, Oestreich J, Gammie SC (2005). L-citrulline immunoreactivity reveals nitric oxide production in the electromotor and electrosensory systems of the weakly electric fish, Apteronotus leptorhynchus. Brain, Behavior, and Evolution, 65:1-13.

Bronikowski AM, Rhodes JS, Garland T, Prolla T, Awad T, Gammie SC (2004). The evolution of gene expression in the hippocampus in response to selection for increased locomotor activity. Evolution, 58:2079-2086.

Li G, Rhodes JS, Girard I, Gammie SC, Garland T (2004). Opioid-mediated pain sensitivity in mice bred for high voluntary wheel running. Physiology and Behavior, 83:515-524.

Gammie SC, Negron A, Newman SM, Rhodes JS (2004). Corticotropin-releasing factor inhibits maternal aggression in mice. Behavioral Neuroscience, 118:805-814.

Espana RA, Berridge CW, Gammie SC (2004). Diurnal levels of fos immunoreactivity are elevated within hypocretin neurons in lactating mice. Peptides, 25:1927-1934.

Gammie SC, Hasen NS, Rhodes JS, Girard I, Garland T (2003). Predatory aggression, but not maternal or intermale aggression, is associated with high voluntary wheel-running behavior in mice. Hormones and Behavior, 44:209-221.

Rhodes JS, Garland T, Gammie SC (2003). Patterns of brain activity associated with variation in voluntary wheel-running behavior. Behavioral Neuroscience, 117:1243-1256.

Lonstein JS, Gammie SC (2003). Sensory, hormonal, and neural control of maternal aggression in laboratory rodents. Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Reviews, (in press).

Gammie SC, Nelson RJ (2001). cFOS and pCREB activation and maternal aggression in mice. Brain Research, 898:232-241.

Gammie SC, Nelson RJ (2000). Maternal and mating-induced aggression is associated with an elevation of citrulline immunoreactivity in the paraventricular nucleus in prairie voles. Journal of Comparative Neurology, 418:182-192.

Gammie SC, Olaghere-da Silva UB, Nelson RJ (2000). 3-Bromo-7-nitroindazole, a neuronal nitric oxide synthase inhibitor, impairs maternal aggression and citrulline immunoreactivity in prairie voles. Brain Research, 870:80-86.

Gammie SC, Nelson RJ (1999). Maternal aggression is reduced in neuronal nitric oxide synthase-deficient mice. Journal of Neuroscience, 19:8027-8035.

Gammie SC, Truman JW (1997). Neuropeptide hierarchies and the activation of sequential motor behaviors in the hawkmoth, Manduca sexta. Journal of Neuroscience, 17:4389-4397.