After completing a Bachelors degree in Microbiology at Brigham Young University, David Poulsen obtained his Masters and Ph.D. degrees in Molecular Virology from the University of Delaware. Following the completion of his doctoral degree, Dr. Poulsen trained at the National Institutes of Health as an Intramural Training Research Award (ITRA) fellow with Dr Bruce Cheesbro in the Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases (National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease, Rocky Mountain Laboratories). Following his training at the NIH, Dr. Poulsen served a second post-doctoral fellowship in the CNS Gene Therapy Center at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, PA. In 2001, Dr. Poulsen joined the Montana Neuroscience Institute as a Research Assistant Professor in the Department of Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Sciences at the University of Montana and as a Translational Research Scientist with St. Patrick Hospital and Health Sciences Center. He was promoted to Research Associate Professor in fall 2007.

_______________________________________________________________
INTERESTS OF THE POULSEN LABORATORY

Research in my laboratory involves the use of viral mediated gene transfer to study the function of selected gene products in a tissue and cell type specific manner. We primarily use recombinant Adeno-associated virus (AAV) vectors to deliver expression cassettes which carry both sense and antisense gene constructs driven by cell type specific promoters, thus allowing us to examine the effects of both the overexpression and knockdown of individual genes in selected cell types. As a translational research laboratory, we are also very interested in applying the discoveries of basic science to the development of clinically relevant applications. For example, we are examining the potential of specific genes, such as Math-1, to drive the regeneration of hair cells from support cells within the cochlea as a potential treatment for hearing loss. We are also using viral mediated gene transfer to examin the roles which specific glutamate transporters plays in the regulation of excitatory and inhibitory synaptic transmission as it relates to neuroprotection and neurodegeneration associated with excitotoxic injuries.

_______________________________________________________________
SELECTED PUBLICATIONS

Julie V. Selkirk, Theodore H. Stiefel, Ida M. Stone, Greg S. Naeve, Alan C. Foster & David J. Poulsen. Over-expression of the human EAAT2 glutamate transporter within neurons of mouse organotypic hippocampal slice cultures leads to increased vulnerability of CA1 pyramidal cells. Eur J Neuroscience 2005 Apr;21(8):2291-6.

Ida M. Stone, Diana I. Lurie, Mathew W. Kelley, and David J. Poulsen. ADENO-ASSOCIATED VIRUS MEDIATED GENE TRANSFER TO HAIR CELLS AND SUPPORT CELLS OF THE MURINE COCHLEA. Molecular Therapy 2005. 11(6):843-848.

A.M. Babcock, D. Standing, K. Bullshields, E. Schwartz, C.M. Paden, D.J. Poulsen. In Vivo Inhibition of Hippocampal Ca2+/Calmodulin-dependent Protein Kinase II by RNA Interference. Molecular Therapy 2005 Jun;11(6):899-905.

Harrop JS, Poulsen DJ, Xiao W, Freese A, During MJ. Effect of altering titer, serotype, and promoter in recombinant adenoassociate virus gene therapy expression of spinal cord neurons and astrocytes. Spine. (2004). Dec 15;29(24):2787-92.

Poulsen, D J, J S Harrop, M D, and M J During, M D (2001). Gene therapy for spinal cord injury and disease. J of Spinal Cord Med. 25(1): 2-11

During, M J, C W Symes, P A Lawlor, J Lin, J Dunning, H L Fitzsimons, D Poulsen, P Leone, R Xu, B L Dicker, J Lipski and D Young. (2000). An oral vaccine against NMDAR1 with efficacy in experimental stroke and epilepsy. Science 287:1453-1460.

Poulsen, D J, C Favara, E Snyder, J Portis, B Chesebro,  (1999). Increased neurovirulence of polytropic mouse retroviruses delivered by inoculation of brain with infected neural stem cells, Virology, 263, 23-29.

Poulsen, D J, S J Robertson, C A Favara, J L Portis, B W Chesebro, (1998). Mapping of a neurovirulence determinant within the envelope protein of a polytropic murine retovirus: induction of CNS disease by low levels of virus, Virology, 248, 199-207.

Poulsen, D J, C L Keeler Jr., (1997). Characterization of the assembly and processing of infectious laryngotracheitis virus glycoprotein B J Gen. Virology, 78, 2945-2951.

Poulsen, D J, C R A Burton, J J O’Brian, S J Rabin, C L Keeler Jr., (1991). Identification of the infectious laryngotracheitis virusglycoprotein gB gene by the polymerase chain reaction. Virus Genes, 5,335-347.