Dr. Paris is a Research Associate Professor in the School of Pharmacy BioMolecular Sciences Department. His research aims to: (1) Understand the affective, cognitive, sensory, and reward-related pathology associated with addiction and co-morbid neurodegenerative disease states (including neuroAIDS and accelerated aging) (2) Identify natural and pharmacological therapeutics that can ameliorate sequelae associated with addiction and neurodegeneration His lab uses an array of behavioral, cellular, and molecular techniques to model addiction and neurodegenerative disease so that novel strategies for therapeutic intervention can be assessed. Primarily, his lab is engaged in work to understand and ameliorate the neuroendocrine factors that may be dysregulated by drugs of abuse (cannabinoids, injection psychostimulants, and opioids as well as prescription medications) and associated disease states, including neuroHIV.
Research Interests
- HIV neuroinfection and cure
- Drug abuse and its effects on neurological behavior
- Drug discovery and modulation of the immune and endocrine systems
Biography
Dr. Paris received his B.S. from Marywood University, completing an Honors Thesis on the role of circulating sex steroids and cognition in people. He attained his Ph.D. in Behavioral Neuroscience at The University at Albany-SUNY where he examined the role of neurosteroids on affect, cognition, and natural- and drug-of-abuse-related reward. In his postdoctoral work, Dr. Paris applied his prior training to examine the neuroendocrine mechanisms that may be involved in the behavioral and cellular pathology associated with drugs of abuse and neuroHIV. His lab collaborates with chemists and bioengineers in order to develop new therapeutic compounds and approaches for the treatment of addiction and neuroHIV.
Publications
Education
Ph.D. Behavioral Neuroscience, Suny at Albany (2011)