Michael E. Greenberg
Harvard University
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Primary Section: 24, Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience Secondary Section: 22, Cellular and Developmental Biology Membership Type:
Member
(elected 2008)
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Biosketch
Michael E. Greenberg grew up in Brooklyn and attended Wesleyan University. He received his PhD from The Rockefeller University in 1982 and conducted postdoctoral research in the laboratory of Dr. Edward Ziff at New York University Medical Center. In 1986, Greenberg joined the faculty at Harvard Medical School where he and his colleagues have investigated how synaptic activity controls gene transcription, thus revealing the mechanism by which the external environment modifies the output of the neuronal genome and how nature and nurture are mechanistically intertwined. His discovery of a genetic program underlying the development and function of brain synapses has transformed both our understanding of nervous system function and our ability to treat neurological and psychiatric diseases. Greenberg is an elected member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the National Academy of Science, and the National Academy of Medicine. Amongst other honors, he was awarded the Gerard Prize for Lifetime Achievement (shared with Dr. Catherine Dulac) in 2019 and the Gruber Neuroscience Prize (shared with Dr. Carla Shatz) in 2015.
Research Interests
Current research in the Greenberg laboratory has focused on the mechanisms of signal transduction that carry the neuronal activity-dependent signal from the membrane to the nucleus to activate gene transcription. In addition, Greenberg and his colleagues are investigating how this experience-dependent process controls neural circuit development and plasticity. This work involves the integrated use of mouse models, traditional cell biological, biochemical, and electrophysiological methods, as well as next-generation sequencing technologies to analyze activity-dependent gene regulation and function. These studies seek to both elucidate the mechanisms by which neuronal activity shapes the development of the central nervous system and provide new insight into the etiology of various human cognitive disorders.
