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Speakers Bios

Nathaniel Heintz, Ph.D.

Nathaniel Heintz earned his B.S. from Williams College, and his Ph.D. from SUNY, Albany. He was a postdoctoral fellow, working with Dr. Robert Roeder, at Washington University. In 1983, Heintz was Head of Laboratory, Molecular Biology, The Rockefeller University. As of 1993, he has been Professor and HHMI Investigator, and as of 2005, a James and Marilyn Simons Professor and HHMI Investigator.

Nathaniel Heintz's lab has focused on the identification of novel pathways that participate in the development and function/dysfunction of the mammalian brain. An understanding of brain development and function must rest upon the investigation of molecular mechanisms that contribute to its histological and functional complexities. Over the past decade, his molecular genetic studies have identified a variety of genes and led to the discovery of novel components or pathways required for normal metabolic function in specific subsets of CNS precursor cells (Blbp, 10-Fdhfd), proliferation of progenitor cells in the cerebellum and peripheral epithelia (Zipro1), modulation of nicotinic receptors in the brain and periphery (Lynx1), and function and degeneration of cerebellar Purkinje neurons (Lurcher [Grid2], nPIST, Beclin1).

It became apparent that the diversity of cell types present in the CNS and the complexities of their function must reflect the actions of many thousands of genes expressed in the CNS, whose products perform myriad, often subtle, roles. So, Dr. Heintz's lab developed a suite of novel approaches based on the manipulation of bacterial artificial chromosomes (BACs) for the investigation of genes, cells, and circuits. These methods are the foundation of a large-scale effort (GENSAT; http://www.gensat.org) supported by the NINDS, to provide a molecular map of the mammalian brain, and identify BAC vectors allowing genetic access to each of the major classes of CNS neurons.