Christopher Potter PhD
Associate Professor of Neuroscience
Co-Director of the Neuroscience Training Program
Member, Neuroscience Training Program
cpotter@jhmi.edu
Telephone Number: 443-287-4151
Fax Number: 443-287-7672
The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience
The Center for Sensory Biology
Johns Hopkins University
School of Medicine
855 North Wolfe St.
Baltimore, MD 21205
Room: 431 Rangos Building
Lab Page
Telephone Number: 443-287-4151
Fax Number: 443-287-7672
The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience
The Center for Sensory Biology
Johns Hopkins University
School of Medicine
855 North Wolfe St.
Baltimore, MD 21205
Room: 431 Rangos Building
Lab Page
Areas of Research
Neural Circuits, Ensembles + ConnectomesCellular + Molecular Neuroscience
Graduate Program Affiliations
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Montage of olfactory projection neurons in the fly brain.
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Individual projection neurons as labeled by MARCM analysis. Projection neurons are the output neurons for the antennal lobe, and carry olfactory information to higher processing centers, like the mushroom body and lateral horn.
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Olfactory receptor neurons innervating the fly antennal lobe.
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Or7a olfactory neurons targeting a single glomerulus. Or7a receptors function as pheromone detectors for 9-tricosene, and mediate aggregation and egg-laying decisions. Lin, et al, eLife, 2015.
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Anopheles mosquito bloodfeeding on a human hand.
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Anopheles gambiae mosquitoes use their sense of smell to find a human host. Our lab is investigating the mosquito olfactory system, and how mosquitoes distinguish humans from other animals.
Insect Olfaction: Molecules, Neurons, and Behavior
The current research focus of my laboratory is investigating the olfactory system of Anopheles mosquitoes.
We have developed new strains of Anopheles mosquitoes, utilizing the Q-system we originally developed for use in Drosophila, to explore how living Anopheles mosquitoes respond to their olfactory environment. Current efforts are focused on exploring how insect repellents affect a mosquito’s sense of smell, from the neurons that are activated, to the receptors required, to the behaviors that are elicited. Other projects include (but are not limited to): investigating the dynamic regulation of mosquito odorant receptors, generating and characterizing knock-ins and mutants of mosquito olfactory receptors, and exploring biting behaviors.
We are always looking for motivated graduate students, so if any of the above sounds interesting, email me to learn more about the lab. Or visit our lab webpage.
Keywords: Mosquito olfaction, Anopheles olfaction, Insect olfaction, Q-system, QF2, Neurogenetic, Mosquito olfactory system