BIOPHYSICAL SOCIETY NEWSLETTER
6
JULY
2014
Know the Editors
Miriam Goodman
Stanford University
Editor for Channels and
Transporters Section
Q:
What is your area of research?
Our sense of touch is the first sense to develop,
the last to fade, and the least well understood.
Work in the Goodman lab exploits the nematode,
Caenorhabditis
elegans
, to explore the mechanisms
of touch, nociception, and proprioception. These
sensory pathways depend on the activation of
modality--and sensory neuron-specific ion chan-
nels and downstream signals. We use genetics
paired with behavioral assays to identify proteins
responsible for sensory transduction, including
DEG/ENaC sodium and TRP channels, as well
as components of the cytoskeleton and plasma
membrane. We explore the cellular roles of these
proteins by
in vivo
whole-cell patch clamp record-
ing, and uncover structure–function relation-
ships in channel physiology using single-channel
recordings of wild type and mutant channels
expressed in
Xenopus
oocytes. Several of the mol-
ecules we have placed into sensory pathways have
evolutionarily conserved roles and known links
to human disease. In addition to deconstructing
molecular pathways, we exploit the tractability of
C. elegans
for behavioral studies and circuit dis-
section to describe the neural pathways mediating
sensorimotor behaviors. For these studies, we have
developed a number of behavioral assays and our
Worm Tracker, which traces the locomotion of
multiple worms in parallel. Recently, we devel-
oped a genetically encoded molecular strain sensor
and used it to probe and visualize the interplay
between neuronal cell mechanics and mecha-
nosensitivity. Much of our research depends
on interdisciplinary collaboration, including an
ongoing relationship with the Stanford Micro-
systems Laboratory, led by
Beth Pruitt.
Working
together, we created feedback-controlled piezore-
sistive cantilevers and used them to measure body
mechanics and how it affects touch sensation. Our
accomplishments, both past and future, rely on
many other collaborators who help to make the
research fun as well as productive.
The Biophysics of Drug
Development
A New Collection from
BJ
This collection of 12 articles highlights recent
advances in the biophysics of drug development
and delivery—areas of central importance to bio-
medical research. The collection includes a mix of
computational and experimental research articles,
which provide detailed biophysical insight into
the development of new therapeutic approaches to
disease.
BJ
Associate Editor
Nathan Baker
curated this
collection, which can be accessed through the
BJ
webpage
without
subscription until July 24. Please share this link
with your colleagues who work in drug develop-
ment.
BJ
Welcomes New Editorial
Board Members
As of June 30, we said goodbye to 19 members
of the Editorial Board who served the
Biophysical
Journal
tirelessly. We welcomed 20 new Editorial
Board Members, said welcome back to 17 mem-
bers who renewed for a second three-year term,
and congratulated three Editorial Board Members
who were “promoted” to Associate Editors.
Biophysical Journal Corner
Miriam Goodman
