Assistant Professor
Position
Assistant Professor and Director of Translational Research Imaging
Departments of Psychiatry and Neuroscience
University of Florida College of Medicine, Gainesville, FL
Contact Information
Department of Psychiatry
University of Florida College of Medicine
PO Box 100256
Gainesville, FL 32610-0256
Phone: 294-4911 (office)
Email: febo@ufl.edu
Training
B.Sc. in Biology, University of Puerto Rico
Ph.D. in Physiology, University of Puerto Rico
Postdoctoral Fellow, Neuroimaging, University of Massachusetts Medical School
Current Research
Our research focuses on using neuroimaging to study the neural correlates of addiction in rodent models. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) allows us to inspect in vivo brain activation in response to a variety of cognitive, emotional and drug stimuli without disrupting the natural organization of the brain. The strength of the technique lies in its non-invasive nature that can permit longitudinal functional studies in the same animal over its adult life. The relatively good spatial and temporal resolution and the ever-growing database on the biological and biophysical basis of the blood oxygen level dependent (BOLD) signal make it a unique technique in preclinical and translational neuroscience research. Presently we are investigating several areas of interest that include: (i) the long term impact of chronic cocaine exposure on the brain dopaminergic system, (ii) the role of brain oxytocin and vasopressin systems on the processing of social stimuli, and (iii) the specific roles of the medial prefrontal cortex on motivation and emotion. Our work could contribute significantly to understanding conditions such as addiction and depression.
Recent Publications
- Colon-Perez LM, Tran K, Thompson K, Pace MC, Blum K, Goldberger BA, Gold MS, Bruijnzeel AW, Setlow B, Febo M (2016) The psychoactive designer drug and bath salt constituent MDPV causes widespread disruption of brain functional connectivity. Neuropsychopharmacology. , Epub ahead of print. [PMID: 26997298]
- Bruijnzeel AW, Qi X, Guzvha LV, Wall S, Deng JV, Gold MS, Febo M, Setlow B. (2016) Behavioral characterization of the effects of cannabis smoke and anandamide in rats. PLoS One . 11(4): e0153327. [PMID: 27065006]
- Zubcevic J, Jun JY, Kim S, Perez P, Afzal A, Qi Y, Shan Z, Li W, Febo M, Mocco J, Feng Y, Baekey DM, Raizada MK. Altered inflammatory response is associated with an impaired autonomic input to the bone marrow in the spontaneously hypertensive rat, Hypertension, 2014; 63(3):542-550. [PMID: 24366083]
- Bruijnzeel AW, Alexander JC, Perez PD, Bauzo-Rodriguez R, Igari M, Hall G, Klausner R, Guerra V,
Zeng H, Febo M (2014) Acute nicotine administration increases BOLD fMRI signal in brain regions involved in reward signaling and compulsive drug intake in rats. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol. 18(2). [PMCID: PMC4368882] - Nephew BC, Febo M (2012). Effects of cocaine on maternal care and neurochemistry. Current Neuropharmacology, 10:53-63.
- Febo M (2012). Firing patterns of maternal rat prelimbic neurons during spontaneous contact with pups. Brain Res Bull. 88:534-42.