David Parfitt

David Parfitt, Ph.D.

Academic and Clinical Appointments

Assistant Professor of Psychiatry

The Rochester Center for Mind-Body Research

Contact Information

Department of Psychiatry
300 Crittenden Blvd.
Rochester, NY 14642

(585) 275-8468

david_parfitt@urmc.rochester.edu

Education

University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA	BS	1991	Behavioral Neuroscience
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI	MS	1994	Neuroscience
University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI	PhD	1997	Neuroscience
Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI	Postdoctoral	1997-1999	Neuroscience

Professional Overview

One aim of our behavioral neuroendocrinology laboratory is to understand how early life stressors alter brain mechanisms that ultimately alter physiology and behavior long-term. We are currently developing a mouse model to explore the impact of neonatal rearing environment on an offspring’s future susceptibility or resilience towards future stressful situations. Our research laboratory utilizes a whole animal approach with a variety of techniques to elucidate how early life stressors alters behavior (maternal behavior towards the developing pups as well as behavior of the offspring), hormone secretion (adrenocorticotropin hormone, corticosterone, etc.), and protein and mRNA expression (for markers of neuronal activation and regulators of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis) within the brain. Once this mouse maternal separation paradigm is established, we will take advantage of the powerful genetic tools available in the mouse (including knockout and transgenic technologies) to determine the interaction between environment, genetic, and epigenetic factors governing brain development. This basic research has clinical biomedical relevance as increasing evidence in humans suggests that early adverse experience contributes to the vulnerability for a variety of psychopathologies particularly depression.

Publications

Helmreich, D. L., Crouch, M, Dorr, N. P., & Parfitt, D. B. (2005). Peripheral triiodothyronine (T3) levels during escapable and inescapable footshock. Physiology and Behavior, in press.

Helmreich, D. L., Parfitt, D. B., Lu, X. Y., Akil, H., & Watson, S. J. (2005). Relation between the hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid (HPT) axis and the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis during repeated stress. Neuroendocrinology 81, 183-192.

Parfitt, D. B., Levin, J. K., Saltstein, K. P., Klayman, A. S., Greer, L. M., & Helmreich, D. L. (2004). Differential early rearing environments can accentuate or attenuate the responses to stress in male C57BL/6 mice. Brain Research 1016, 111-118.

Cordner, A. P., Herwood, M. B., Helmreich, D. L., & Parfitt, D. B. (2004). Antidepressants block the effects of inescapable stress on male reproductive behavior and corticotropin releasing hormone mRNA expression in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus of the Syrian hamster (Mesocricetus auratus). Journal of Neuroendocrinology 16, 628-636.

Richardson, H. N., Nelson, A. L. A., Ahmed, E. I., Parfitt, D. B., Romeo, R. D., & Sisk, C. L. (2004). Female pheromones stimulate release of luteinizing hormone and testosterone without altering GnRH mRNA in adult male Syrian hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus). General and Comparative Endocrinology 138, 211-217.

Holmer, H. K., Rodman, J. E., Helmreich, D. L., & Parfitt, D. B. (2003). Differential effects of chronic escapable versus inescapable stress on male Syrian hamster (Mesocricetus auratus) reproductive behavior. Hormones and Behavior 43, 381-387.

Boscarino, B. T. & Parfitt, D. B. (2002). Chronic oral administration of clomipramine decreases sexual behavior in the male Syrian hamster (Mesocricetus auratus). Physiology and Behavior 75, 361-366.

Richardson, H. N., Parfitt, D. B., Thompson, R. C., & Sisk, C. L. (2002). Redefining gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) cell groups in the male Syrian hamster: testosterone regulates GnRH mRNA in the tenia tecta. Journal of Neuroendocrinology, 14, 375-383.

Williams, N. I., Helmreich, D. L., Parfitt, D. B., Caston-Balderrama, A., & Cameron J. L. (2001). Evidence for a causal role of low energy availability in the induction of menstrual cycle disturbances during strenuous exercise training. Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism, 86, 5184-5193.

Williams, N. I., Caston-Balderrama, A. L., Helmreich, D. L., Parfitt, D. B., Nosbisch, C., & Cameron, J. L. (2001). Induction of menstrual cycle disturbances in cynomolgus monkeys during strenous exercise training: longitudinal changes in reproductive hormones and menstrual cyclicity. Endocrinology, 142, 2381-2389.

Parfitt, D. B., Thompson, R. C., Richardson, H. N., Romeo, R. D., & Sisk, C. L. (1999). Pubertal increases in GnRH mRNA expression in specific neuronal subpopulations of the male Syrian hamster brain. Journal of Neuroendocrinology, 11, 621-627.

Romeo, R. D., Parfitt, D. B., Richardson, H. N., & Sisk, C. L. (1998). Pheromones elicit equivalent levels of Fos-immunoreactivity in prepubertal and adult male Syrian hamsters. Hormones and Behavior, 34, 48-55.

Parfitt, D. B. & Newman, S. W. (1998). Fos-immunoreactivity within the extended amygdala is correlated with the onset of sexual satiety. Hormones and Behavior, 34, 17-29.

Newman, S. W., Parfitt, D. B., & Kollack-Walker, S. W. (1997). Mating induced c-fos expression patterns complement and supplement observations after lesions in the male Syrian hamster brain. New York Academy of Sciences, 807, 239-259.

Goodman, R. L., Parfitt, D. B., Evans, N. P., Dahl, G. E., & Karsch, F. J. (1995). Endogenous opioid peptides control the amplitude and shape of gonadotropin-releasing hormone pulses in the ewe. Endocrinology, 136, 2412-2420.

Schreihofer, D. A., Parfitt, D. B., & Cameron, J. L. (1993). Suppression of luteinizing hormone secretion after short-term fasting in male rhesus monkeys: the role of metabolic versus stress signals. Endocrinology, 132, 1881-1889.