E-mail:
Associate Professor, Baylor College of Medicine
B.S., University of the Republic, Montevideo, Uruguay
M.S., Pierre and Marie Curie University, Paris, France
Ph.D., University of Nantes, France, 2002
Postdoc, McGill University, Montreal, Canada, 2002-08
Cellular and molecular mechanism of memory storage
The goal of my laboratory is to study the molecular and cellular mechanisms, as well as the neuronal circuitry, underlying long-term synaptic plasticity, learning and memory. I believe that by studying the mechanisms underlying long-lasting synaptic plasticity and mnemonic processes we can generate corresponding insights into human cognitive disorders.
Our prior work established a critical role for translational control in long-lasting forms of synaptic plasticity and memory formation. Currently, our lab studies the molecular and cellular mechanism underlying long-lasting synaptic plasticity and memory. To study these processes, in a multidisciplinary approach, we combine transgenic manipulation, shRNA and miRNA delivery using lentiviral vectors, biochemical, imaging, behavioral and in vitro and in vivo neurophysiological methodologies.
In a complementary line of research, we intend to elucidate the mechanisms linking translational control with developmental disorders such as Autism and mental retardation and other neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease.
Selected Publications
Costa-Mattioli M, Gobert D, Harding H, Herdy B, Azzi M, Bruno M, Bidinosti M, Ben Mamou C, Marcinkiewicz E, Yoshida M, et al. (2005) Translational control of hippocampal synaptic plasticity and memory by the eIF2alpha kinase GCN2. Nature 436:1166-1173.
Costa-Mattioli M, Gobert D, Stern E, Gamache K, Cuello C, Sossin W, Kaufman R, Pelletier J, Rosenblum K, Krnjevic K, Lacaille J-C, Nader K, Sonenberg N (2007) eIF2a phosphorylation regulates the switch from short to long-term synaptic plasticity and memory. Cell 129:195-206.
Colina R*, Costa-Mattioli M*, Dowling RJ, Jaramillo M, Tai LH, Breitbach CJ, Martineau Y, Larsson O, Rong L, Svitkin YV, Makrigiannis AP, Bell JC, Sonenberg N (2008) Translational control of the innate immune response through IRF-7. Nature 452:323-328. (*equal contribution)
Costa-Mattioli M, Sonenberg N (2008) RAPping production of type I interferon in pDCs through mTOR. Nature Immunology 9:1097-1099.
Patel PH, Costa-Mattioli M, Schulze KL, Bellen HJ (2009) The Drosophila deoxyhypusine hydroxylase homologue nero and its target eIF5A are required for cell growth and the regulation of autophagy. Journal of Cell Biology 185:1181-1194.
Petroulakis E, Parsyan A, Dowling RJ, LeBacquer O, Martineau Y, Bidinosti M, Larsson O, Alain T, Rong L, Mamane Y, Paquet M, Furic L, Topisirovic I, Shahbazian D, Livingstone M, Costa-Mattioli M, Teodoro JG, Sonenberg N (2009) p53-dependent translational control of senescence and transformation via 4E-BPs. Cancer Cell 16:439-446.
Costa-Mattioli M, Sossin WS, Klann E, Sonenberg N (2009) Translational control of long-lasting synaptic plasticity and memory. Neuron 61:10-26.
Gkogkas C, Sonenberg N, Costa-Mattioli M (2010) Translational control mechanisms in long-lasting synaptic plasticity and memory. Journal of Biological Chemistry 285:31913-31917.
Stoica L, Zhu PJ, Huang W, Zhou H, Kozma SC, Costa-Mattioli M (2011) Selective pharmacogenetic inhibition of mammalian target of Rapamycin complex I (mTORC1) blocks long-term synaptic plasticity and memory storage. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA 108:3791-3796.
Zhu PJ, Huang W, Kalikulov D, Yoo JW, Placzek AN, Stoica L, Zhou H, Bell JC, Friedlander MJ, Krnjevic K, Noebels JL, Costa-Mattioli M (2011) Suppression of PKR promotes network excitability and enhanced cognition by interferon-gamma-mediated disinhibition. Cell 147:1384-1396.
Contact Information
Mauro Costa-Mattioli, Ph.D.
Department of Neuroscience
Baylor College of Medicine
One Baylor Plaza
Houston, Texas 77030, U.S.A.
Tel: (713) 798-8913
Fax: (713) 798-3946
E-mail: