Biochemistry & Pharmacology: Open Access
Open Access

Erick Omar Hernandez-Ochoa

Biography

Dr. Hernández-Ochoa has both M.D. (2000) and PhD (2007) degrees. He earned both degrees from the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM, Mexico). During his postdoctoral studies (2007-2011) at the laboratory of Professor Dr. Martin F. Schneider, he conducted studies in neurons and skeletal muscle aiming to understand the function of NFATc1, a transcription factor, and S100A1, a calcium-binding protein using electrophysiological approaches. He investigated the patterns of electrical activity that control the activation of NFATc1 in sympathetic neurons. This transcription factor regulates many critical functions such as neuronal development, synaptic plasticity and the axonal growth. He also identified a novel mechanism of regulation of the sympathetic nervous system that innervates the heart when the S100A1 is added extracellularly. This form of regulation might occur during or after a heart attack and the accompanying ischemic damage. In a series of more recent co-authored publications, he and collaborators, demonstrated that S100A1 fine tune the skeletal muscle performance. His current appointment is as a Research Associate at the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD.

Research Interest

Neuronal and muscular physiology.
Calcium signals and voltage-gated ion channels in excitable cells.
Regulation of calcium signals and excitability in neurons and skeletal muscle. Alterations of voltage gated ion channels function and calcium signaling in neurons and muscle.
Pathophysiology of Diabetes, Denervation and Skeletal Muscle diseases.