Anne Elizabeth West

Professor of Neurobiology

The long term goal of our laboratory is to understand at a cellular/molecular level how neuronal activity regulates the formation and maturation of synapses during brain development, and ultimately to use genetic model systems to understand how defects in this developmental process lead to cognitive dysfunction.

Appointments and Affiliations

  • Professor of Neurobiology
  • Professor of Cell Biology
  • Member of the Duke Cancer Institute
  • Faculty Network Member of the Duke Institute for Brain Sciences

Contact Information

  • Office Location: Bryan Research Building, 311 Research Drive Room 301D, Durham, NC 27710
  • Office Phone: +1 919 681 1909
  • Email Address: west@neuro.duke.edu
  • Websites:

Education

  • B.A. Cornell University, 1989
  • M.D. Harvard University, 1998
  • Ph.D. Harvard University, 1998

Courses Taught

  • UPGEN 778B: University Program in Genetics and Genomics Biological Solutions Module Il
  • NEUROSCI 495: Research Independent Study 3
  • NEUROSCI 494: Research Independent Study 2
  • NEUROBIO 793: Research in Neurobiology
  • NEUROBIO 726S: Neurobiology Journal Club
  • NEUROBIO 719: Concepts in Neuroscience I: Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology
  • NEUROBIO 393: Research Independent Study

In the News

Representative Publications

  • Hazlett, Mariah F., Victoria L. Hall, Esha Patel, Aaron Halvorsen, Nicole Calakos, and Anne E. West. “The Perineuronal Net Protein Brevican Acts in Nucleus Accumbens Parvalbumin-Expressing Interneurons of Adult Mice to Regulate Excitatory Synaptic Inputs and Motivated Behaviors.” Biol Psychiatry, February 10, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.biopsych.2024.02.003.
  • Minto, Melyssa, Jesús Emiliano Sotelo-Fonseca, Vijyendra Ramesh, and Anne E. West. “Genome binding properties of Zic transcription factors underlie their changing functions during neuronal maturation.” BioRxiv, January 4, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.01.04.574185.
  • West, Anne E. “The neuronal epigenome is special.” Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol 25, no. 1 (January 2024): 6. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41580-023-00656-1.
  • West, Anne E., and Jeremy J. Day. “Genetics and epigenetics approaches as a path to the future of addiction science.” Mol Cell Neurosci 127 (December 2023): 103898. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mcn.2023.103898.
  • Green, Matthew V., David A. Gallegos, Jane-Valeriane Boua, Luke C. Bartelt, Arthy Narayanan, and Anne E. West. “Single-Nucleus Transcriptional Profiling of GAD2-Positive Neurons From Mouse Lateral Habenula Reveals Distinct Expression of Neurotransmission- and Depression-Related Genes.” Biol Psychiatry Glob Open Sci 3, no. 4 (October 2023): 686–97. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.bpsgos.2023.04.004.