Loretta Piccenna
BSc (Hons) (Mon)
Neuropeptides Group
Peptide Neurobiology Laboratory
Contact Details
Email: loretta.piccenna@florey.edu.au
Phone +61 (0)3 8344 1930/5440
Fax: +61 (0)3 9348 1707
Supervisors
PhD Project Title
The role of the relaxin receptor 1 (RXFP1) in the adult central nervous system: utilising a RXFP1 knock-out mouse model
Research Interests
Neuropeptide G-protein receptor/ligand interactions using both genetic, behavioural and regulatory approaches.
Laboratory Techniques
- Western blotting
- Immunoprecipitation
- Immunocytochemistry (both free floating and slide mounted)
- PCR
- In situ hybridization (radiolabelled probes)
- Radioactive ligand binding assays
- Primary and secondary cell line tissue culture (in particular isolation of primary motor neurons from mouse spinal cord)
- Intracerebroventricular cannulation (administration of drugs/peptides for acute behavioural effects)
- Behavioural phenotyping (Locomotor cells, Rotarod, Elevated plus maze, Y-maze, Forced swimming)
- Use of Ethovision, Adobe Photoshop, CorelDraw, GraphPad Prism
Additional Information
- Currently in the last six months of my candidature
- Students of the Howard Florey Institute President (SOHFI) 2005-2006
- NHMRC Dora Lush Scholarship (2005-2007)
Publications and Articles
Anderson KN, Potter AC, Piccenna LG, Quah AKJ, Davies KE and Cheema SS (2004) Isolation and culture of motor neurons from the newborn mouse spinal cord. Brain Research Protocols 12: 132-136.
Turner BJ, Murray SS, Piccenna LG, Lopes EC, Kilpatrick TJ, Cheema SS (2004) Effect of p75 neurotrophin receptor antagonist on disease progression in transgenic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis mice. Journal of Neuroscience Research 78 (2): 193-199.
Poster presentation, Relaxin, Wyoming, USA: Piccenna L, Shen P-J, Ma S, Burazin TCD, Gossen JA, Mosselman S, Bathgate RAD and Gundlach AL (2005) Localisation of LGR7 gene expression in adult mouse brain using LGR7 knock out/LacZ knock-in mice: Correlation with LGR7 mRNA distribution. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 1041: 197-204.
Poster presentation, Society for Neuroscience, USA & ANS, Perth, Australia: Piccenna L, Shen P-J, Ma S, Burazin TCD, Gossen JA, Mosselman S, Tregear GW, Bathgate RAD and Gundlach AL (2004) LGR7 knock-out/LacZ knockin mice: Comparison of LGR7 receptor gene expression with LGR7 mRNA and relaxin binding site distributions in brain. Society for Neuroscience Abstracts (in press).
Gundlach AL and Piccenna L. RXFP1: relaxin receptors. xPharm 2007 Eds. Enna, S.J., Bylund, D.B., Elsevier Inc., New York. <http://www.xpharm.com/citation?ArticleID=>
Poster presentation, ICN, Pittsburgh, USA: Piccenna L, Shen P-J, Ma S, Mosselman S, Bathgate RAD, Lawrence AJ and Gundlach AL (2006) Neurochemical phenotype of LGR7-positive neurons in mouse brain? Studies in the LGR7-Knock-out/LacZ Knock-in mouse. Frontiers in Neuroendocrinology, 27 (1): 92-93.
Poster presentation, ENDO, Boston, USA: Piccenna L, Shen P-J, Ma S, Mosselman S, Bathgate RAD, Lawrence AJ and Gundlach AL (2006) Relaxin-LGR7 system in mouse brain: Neurochemical and behavioural phenotyping of LGR7-KO/LacZ-KI mouse
Poster presentation, IBRO, Melbourne, Australia: Piccenna, L, Shen, P-J, and Gundlach, A (2007) Distribution and phenotype of rxfp1-expressing neurons in mouse hypothalamus: implications for functional role of relaxin in different species
Students
