Jessica Baraskewich

Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of British Columbia; Canada Research Chair in Neurobiology

Craig is interested in how nerve cells in the brain make synaptic connections and modify connections with experience. She studies these questions of synapse development and synapse plasticity mainly from a cellular and molecular viewpoint. She then uses neuron culture, molecular biology, live cell fluorescence imaging, mouse molecular genetics and electrophysiology to answer these questions.

This fundamental research bears directly on psychiatric disorders. Genetic variants in multiple synaptic organizing complexes are linked to autism spectrum disorders and schizophrenia. She believes that the cellular molecular level studies and animal models will contribute to rational and effective therapies for these disorders.

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