Department of Neurobiology and Behavior
University of California
Irvine , CA 92697-4545
(949) 463-1664
ismith@uci.edu

Employment:
University of California, Irvine, Dept. of Neurobiology and Behavior
2012-present Assoc. Prof. Res
2010-2012     Asst. Prof. Res.
2006-2010       Asst. Project Scientist  
2003-2006       Post Doctoral Research Fellow
                       
Education and Training:
University of Leeds, United Kingdom, The School of Medicine, Institute for Cardiovascular Research.
1999-2003       Ph.D . CASE Award. Pfizer Global Research, Sandwich, Kent, UK.
           
University of Leeds, United Kingdom, Department of Pharmacology.
1996-1999       B.Sc. Hons. Pharmacology 2.1.  Final  year dissertation project in collaboration with Pfizer Global Research

Research Areas:

2012-present University of California , Irvine (Department of Neurobiology and Behavior). The professional research series at the University of California is designed for department members engaged in independent research equivalent to that for Professors without teaching commitments.

Two main projects are currently being undertaken in my lab supported by a 5 year R01 research grant awarded in April 2012 by the National Institutes of Health.

1:The study of a new form of communication between cells where calcium is used to transmit information within very long, thin, tubular extensions of the cell membrane.

2: Development of optical technologies (sptPALM, STORM, SCCaNR) to non-invasively record plasma membrane and endoplasmic reticular ion channel activity, motility and spatial distribution at the single molecule level.

2006-2012 University of California , Irvine (Department of Neurobiology and Behavior – Ian Parker, PI) Development of optical technologies to non-invasively record plasma membrane and endoplasmic reticular ion channel activity, motility and spatial distribution.

2003-2006 University of California, Irvine (Department of Neurobiology and Behavior - Frank LaFerla, PI) In vitro fluorescent calcium imaging and molecular biological studies examining mechanisms of neuronal calcium signaling, and mutations related to Alzheimer's disease and neurodegenerative diseases.

1999-2003 University of Leeds, United Kingdom (Institute for Cardiovascular Research – Chris Peers, PI) Thesis studies sponsored by Pfizer Global Research, Kent, UK.
Hypoxia and amyloid β peptide modulation of Ca 2+ signaling in the human neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y and rat type I cortical astrocytes. Examining the molecular link between stroke and Alzheimer’s disease.

1996-1999 University of Leeds , United Kingdom (Department of Pharmacology – Final year dissertation project in collaboration with Pfizer Global Research) An in vitro study to characterise the binding of [ 3H]-dofetilide to various tissue preparations and cell lines.

Publications

Articles:

Smith, I. F ., Shuai, J. & Parker, I.
Active generation and propagation of calcium signals within tunneling membrane nanotubes.
Biophysical Letters. In Press. 2011. [PDF] [PDF_SI]

Cardenas, C. & Miller, R., Smith, I. F., & Bui, T., & Molgo, J., & Muller, M., & Vais, H., Parker, I., Thompson, C., & Birnbaum, M., & Hallows, K. & Foskett, J, K.
Essential regulation of cell bioenergetics by constitutive InsP3R Ca 2+ release controls mTOR-independent autophagy.
Cell. 142:270-283. 2010 . [PDF]. Previewed in [PDF]

Wiltgen, S. M., Smith, I. F. & Parker, I.
Super-resolution imaging of Ca 2+ flux through inositol trisphosphate receptors with millisecond temporal resolution and nanometer spatial resolution.
Biophysical Journal. 99:437-446. 2010. [PDF]

Reissner, K. J., Pu, L., Schaffhausen, J. H., Boyle, H. D., Smith, I. F ., Parker, I. & Carew, T. J.
A novel postsynaptic mechanism for heterosynaptic sharing of short-term plasticity.
Journal of Neuroscience, 30:8797-8806. 2010. [PDF]

Parker, I. & Smith, I. F.
Recording single-channel activity of inositol trisphosphate receptors in intact cells with a microscope, not a patch clamp.
Journal of General Physiology Perspectives.136:119-127. 2010. [PDF]

Smith, I. F ., Wiltgen, S. M., Shuai, J. & Parker, I.
Ca 2+ puffs originate from pre-established, stable clusters of inositol trisphosphate receptors.
Science Signaling, 98: ra77. 2009. [PDF]

Smith, I. F . & Parker, I.
Imaging the quantal substructure of single IP 3R channel activity during Ca 2+ puffs in intact mammalian cells.
PNAS, 106: 6404-6409. 2009. [PDF]

Smith, I. F ., Wiltgen, S. M. & Parker, I.
Localization of puff sites adjacent to the plasma membrane; functional and spatial characterization of Ca 2+ signaling in SH-SY5Y cells utilizing membrane-permeant caged IP 3.
Cell Calcium. 45: 65-76. 2009. [PDF]

Green, K. N., Demuro, A., Hitt, B. D., Smith, I. F ., Parker. I. & LaFerla, F. M.
Presenilin regulates, and is necessary for, normal SERCA pump activity.
J.Cell. Biol., 181: 1107-1116. 2008. [PDF]. Previewed in [PDF]

Stutzmann, G., Smith, I. F ., Caccamo, A., Oddo, S. Parker, I. & LaFerla. F. M.
Enhanced ryanodine-mediated calcium release in mutant PS1-expressing Alzheimer's mouse models.
Ann . N . Y . Acad . Sci., 1097: 5180-5189. 2007. [PDF]

Stutzmann, G., Smith, I. F ., Caccamo, A., Oddo, S. Parker, I. & LaFerla. F. M.
Enhanced ryanodine receptor recruitment contributes to Ca 2+ disruptions in young, adult, and aged Alzheimer's disease mice.
Journal of. Neuroscience., 26:5180-5189. 2006. [PDF]

Oddo. S., Caccamo, A., Smith, I. F ., Green. K. N. & LaFerla. F. M.
A dynamic relationship between intracellular and extracellular pools of A b .
Journal of American Pathology , 168, 184-194. 2006. [PDF]

Smith, I. F ., Green, K. N. & LaFerla, F. M.
Calcium dysregulation and Alzheimer’s disease: Recent advances gained from genetically modified animals.
Cell Calcium. 38, 427-437. 2005. Review. [PDF]

Smith, I. F ., Hitt, B. D., Green, K. N., Oddo, S. & LaFerla F. M.
Enhanced caffeine-induced Ca 2+ release in a 3xTg-AD model of Alzheimer’s disease.
Journal of Neurochemistry, 94, 1711-1718 . 2005. [PDF]

Smith, I. F., Boyle, J. P., Kang, P., Rome, S., Pearson, H. A. & Peers, C.
Hypoxic regulation of Ca 2+ signalling in cultured rat astrocytes.
Glia., 49, 153-157. 2005. [PDF]

Smith, I. F., Boyle, J. P., Pearson, H. A. & Peers, C .
Hypoxic remodeling of Ca 2+ mobilization in type I cortical astrocytes: involvement of ROS and pro-amyloidogenic processing.
Journal of Neurochemistry, 88, 869-877, 2004. [PDF]

Cemeli, E., Smith, I. F., Peers, C., Urenjak, J., Godukhin, O. V., Obrenovitch, T.P. & Anderson, D.
Oxygen-induced DNA damage in freshly isolated brain cells compared with cultured astrocytes in the Comet assay.
Teratog. Carcinog. Mutagen., 2, 43-52. 2003. [PDF]

Plant, L. D, Boyle, J. P , Smith, I. F , Peers, C & Pearson, H. A.
The Production of amyloid b peptides is a critical requirement for the viability of central neurones.
Journal of Neuroscience, 23, 5531-5535, 2003. [PDF]

Smith, I. F., Boyle, J. P., Plant, L. D. Pearson, H. A. & Peers, C.
Chronic hypoxia potentiates capacitative Ca 2+ entry in type I cortical astrocytes.
Journal of Neurochemistry, 85, 1109-1116, 2003. [PDF]

Smith, I. F., Boyle, J. P., Plant, L. D. Pearson, H. A. & Peers, C.
Hypoxic remodelling of Ca 2+ stores in rat type I cortical astrocytes.
Journal of Biological Chemistry 278, 4875-4881. 2003. [PDF]

Smith, I. F ., Boyle, J. P., Vaughn, P. F. T., Pearson, H. A., Cowburn, R. & Peers, C.
Ca 2+ stores and capacitative Ca 2+ entry in human neuroblastoma (SH-SY5Y) cells expressing a familial Alzheimer’s disease presenilin-1 mutation.
Brain Research, 949, 105-111, 2002. [PDF]

Colebrooke, R. L., Smith, I.F., Kemp, P. J. & Peers, C.
Chronic hypoxia remodels voltage-gated Ca 2+ entry in a human airway chemoreceptor cell line.
Neuroscience letters, 31, 69-72. 2002. [PDF]

Smith, I. F ., Boyle, J. P., Vaughan, P. F., Pearson, H. A. & Peers C.
Effects of chronic hypoxia on Ca 2+ stores and capacitative Ca 2+ entry in human neuroblastoma (SH-SY5Y) cells.
Journal of Neurochemistry, 79, 877-84. 2001. [PDF]

Taylor, S. C., Green, K. N., Smith, I. F. & Peers, C.
Prion protein fragment 106-126 potentiates catecholamine secretion from PC12 cells.
Am. J. Cell. Physiol, 2001. [PDF]

Green, K. N., Taylor, S. C., Smith, I. F. & Peers C.
Differential coupling of voltage-gated Ca 2+ channels to catecholamine secretion from separate PC12 cell batches.
Neuroscience letters, 301, 13-16. 2001. [PDF]

Book Chapters:

Green, K. N. Smith. I. F. & LaFerla, F. M.
Role of Ca2+ in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease and transgenic models.
Subcellular Biochemistry: Calcium Signalling and Disease. Molecular Pathology of Ca2+. 45: 507-521. 2007.

Peers, C., Kang, P., Boyle, J. P., Porter, K. E., Pearson, H. A., Smith, I. F. & Kemp, P. J.
Hypoxic regulation of Ca2+ signalling in astrocytes and endothelial cells.
Novartis Found. Symp.,  272:119-27, 2006. Review.

Peers, C., Kang, P., Boyle, J. P., Porter, K. E., Pearson, H. A., Smith, I. F. & Kemp, P. J.
Hypoxic regulation of Ca2+ signalling in astrocytes and endothelial cells.
Adv. Exp. Med. Biol., 580:185-90. 2006.

Peers, C., Smith, I. F., Boyle, J. P. & Pearson, H. A.
Remodelling of Ca2+ homeostasis in type I cortical astrocytes by hypoxia: evidence for association with Alzheimer’s disease.
Biological Chemistry., 385, 285-289. 2004.

Peers, C., Smith, I.F., Boyle, J.P. & Pearson, H.A.
Hypoxic remodeling of Ca2+ homeostasis in rat type I cortical astrocytes. 
Adv. Exp. Med. Biol., 536:467-72, 2003.

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