Levine, Michael S., Ph.D.

Research

The mechanisms underlying neuronal dysfunction in the basal ganglia and cortex in neurodegenerative disorders

Appointments

• Chair, Interdepartmental Undergraduate Program
• Professor, Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences
• Professor in Residence, Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior
• Member, Center for Developmental Neurobiology (IDDRC)
• Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Studies
• Neuroengineering Training Program
• Neuroscience GPB Home Area

Biography

Our primary research interests are directed toward understanding the mechanisms underlying neuronal dysfunction in the basal ganglia and cortex in neurodegenerative disorders. The research consists of a multidisciplinary approach combining neurophysiological, morphological and molecular techniques. This research has evolved into several major projects:

• Examining the physiological changes in mutant mouse models of Huntington’s disease;
• Assessment of neuromodulation in the striatum as it pertains to Parkinson’s disease and assessment of new genetic mouse models of Parkinson’s disease;
• Examining cellular cortical electrophysiological and morphological abnormalities occurring in children suffering from intractable pediatric epilepsy.

Publications

1. Choppakatla, P, Patel, AL, Borjigin, T, Udomlumleart, T, Hu, J, Gregor, T et al.. Loop Extrusion Accelerates Long-Range Enhancer-Promoter Searches in Living Embryos. bioRxiv. 2026; :. doi: 10.64898/2026.02.17.706355. PubMed PMID:41756876 PubMed Central PMC12934817.
2. Liu, C, Zhang, D, Chen, J, She, F, Liu, F, Yu, Z et al.. Coordination-Dependent Oxygen Reduction Reaction Activity of Single Atom Co-Nx-C Electrocatalysts. J Am Chem Soc. 2026;148 (6):6569-6582. doi: 10.1021/jacs.5c20980. PubMed PMID:41649254 .
3. Levine, MS. An eye-popping discovery: early vertebrates had four eyes rather than two. Nature. 2026;650 (8100):47-48. doi: 10.1038/d41586-025-04096-z. PubMed PMID:41565951 .
4. Singer, E, Kim, H, Levine, MS, Treen, N. Cell numbers contribute to cell fate during Ciona cardiopharyngeal mesoderm specification. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2026;123 (2):e2530472123. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2530472123. PubMed PMID:41505519 PubMed Central PMC12799156.
5. Östlund-Sholars, G, Lemaire, LA, Levine, MS. Pair-rule-like transcription patterns during neural tube closure in a proto-vertebrate. Development. 2025;152 (24):. doi: 10.1242/dev.205064. PubMed PMID:41217384 PubMed Central PMC12752508.

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