McMurray Lab Members

Dr. Matthew McMurray, Principal Investigator

Education
BA in Psychology— University of North Carolina
PhD in Psychology—University of North Carolina
Postdoc in Psychology—University of Illinois at Chicago

From my earliest research experiences at the USEPA, where I studied the neurobehavioral effects of water contaminants, I have been fascinated by the mechanisms through which our brain controls our behavior and how these mechanisms can be disrupted. During my doctoral work with Josephine Johns, I built on this early experience to study how in utero exposure to cocaine alters the brain and behavior of the developing offspring. I have since focused my research on the period of adolescence, which is when most individuals have their first experience with drugs of abuse. This continues to be the focus of my current work, but I am also very interested in the basic neurobiology of decision making and impulsivity. These are some of the last cognitive processes to develop, and so are some of the most likely to be disrupted by chemical abuse.

Current Graduate Students

Dani Tapp 2016

Dani Tapp
BS, Psychology - Indiana-University Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)

From my first experiences in research measuring impulsivity in animals selected to prefer alcohol (HAP Mice), I have always been fascinated by decision making and how drugs of abuse interact with those processes. In addition to conducting research on ways to alter impulsive behavior, I have also studied involving how alcohol drinking behavior in HAP Mice is affected by nicotine and amphetamine. I am broadly interested in understanding how alcohol and drugs of abuse alter specific neural networks responsible for decision making as a process and individual aspects of decision making such as impulsivity and attention. In addition to understanding decision making as a behavioral outcome, I am also specifically interested in how drugs alter decision making processes from a genetic, cellular and neuro-developmental perspective.

Undergraduate Students

Elena Penhos

Elena Penhos
Biology, Neuroscience, and Premed Major
Expected Date of Graduation: 2019

Hannah Zerkle

Hannah Zerkle
Zoology and Neuroscience Major
Expected Date of Graduation: 2018

Brittany Nordhaus

Brittany Nordhaus
Biology, Neuroscience, and Premed Major
Expected Date of Graduation: 2018

allie gartner

Allie Gartner
Psychology and Pre-Medical Studies
Expected Date of Graduation: 2019

danny-heller

Danny Heller
Marketing Major and Computer Science Minor
Expected Date of Graduation: 2018

danyelle-roan

Danyelle Roan
Majors: Microbiology, Gerontology, Premedical Studies Majors
Expected Date of Graduation: 2017

2017

Bryson Sanders
Psychology and Neuroscience Majors
Expected Date of Graduation: 2018

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