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Translational Research Preclinical Development People Carsten Nielsen, Ph.D.
Translational Research Preclinical Development People Carsten Nielsen, Ph.D.
| Carsten Nielsen, Ph.D. |
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 Associate Research ScientistContact Information: E-mail: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it Job Description: Investigation and screening of potential new compounds for the treatment of alcoholism, addiction, pain and mental disorders using cell-based assays such as radioligand and functional binding assays, the calcium mobilisation assay, and confocal microscopy, in addition to behavioural testing.
Research Interests: Although the mu-opioid-peptide receptor (MOP-R) plays a significant role in ethanol-mediated reward, the specific roles of the delta- and kappa-opioid-peptide receptors (DOP-R and KOP-R) in ethanol mediated reward are less clear with significant interspecies differences reported. Identification of inhibitors or activators of opioid receptors that have increased selectivity for inhibiting ethanol-mediated behaviors whilst limiting debilitating side effects appears to be an important step in the development of new therapeutics for the treatment of alcoholism. Using cell-based screening assays in HEK293 cells stably expressing opioid receptors, opioid compounds with differential selectivity for DOP-R and KOP-R in comparison to naltrexone have been identified and investigated to dissect the specific roles of the DOP-R and KOP-R in ethanol-mediated behaviors in order to provide potential novel strategies for the development of new therapeutics for the treatment of alcoholism.
These screening methods with subsequent behavioral testing are additionally being utilized to identify novel compounds that specifically target heterodimeric receptor complexes for potential treatments of pain and mental disorders.
Publications: Nielsen, C.K. Simms, J.A., Pierson, H.B., Li, R., Saini, S.K., Ananthan, S., Bartlett, S.E. A novel delta opioid receptor antagonist, SoRI-9409, produces a selective and long-lasting decrease in ethanol consumption in heavy drinking rats. Biological Psychiatry (in press). Kim J.A., Bartlett S., He L., Nielsen C.K., Chang A.M., Kharazia V., Waldhoer M., Ou C.J., Taylor S., Ferwerda M., Cado D., Whistler J.L. 2008 Morphine-Induced Receptor Endocytsis in a Novel Knockin Mouse Reduced Tolerance and Dependence. Curr Biol. 2008 Jan 17;18(2):129-135 [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 18207746 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher] Nielsen CK, Ross FB, Lotfipour S, Saini KS, Edwards SR, Smith MT. Oxycodone and morphine have distinctly different pharmacological profiles: Radioligand binding and behavioural studies in two rat models of neuropathic pain. Pain. 2007 Apr 27; [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 17467904 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher] Smith MT, Edwards SR, Nielsen CK. Oxycodone's mechanism of action and potency differences after spinal and systemic routes of administration. Anesthesiology. 2007 May;106(5):1063-4; author reply 1064-5. No abstract available. PMID: 17457147 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] Nielsen CK, Lewis RJ, Alewood D, Drinkwater R, Palant E, Patterson M, Yaksh TL, McCumber D, Smith MT. Anti-allodynic efficacy of the chi-conopeptide, Xen2174, in rats with neuropathic pain. Pain. 2005 Nov;118(1-2):112-24. Epub 2005 Sep 9. PMID: 16154696 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] Smith MT, Ross FB, Nielsen CK, Saini K. Oxycodone has a distinctly different pharmacology from morphine. Eur J Pain 2001;5 (s1):135-6. Nielsen CK, Ross FB, Smith MT. Incomplete, asymmetric, and route-dependent cross-tolerance between oxycodone and morphine in the Dark Agouti rat. J Pharmacol Exp Ther. 2000 Oct;295(1):91-9. PMID: 10991965 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] Smith MT, Nielsen CK, Lim-Fraser MY, Wright AW, Lau M. Systemic coadministration of chloramphenicol with intravenous but not intracerebroventricular morphine markedly increases morphine antinociception and delays development of antinociceptive tolerance in rats. Drug Metab Dispos. 2000 Feb;28(2):236-44. PMID: 10640523 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] Recent Presentations: Nielsen CK, Simms JA, Hur K, Margolis EB, Mitchell JM, Chen KS, Fields HL, Ananthan S, Bartlett SE. SoRI 9409, a delta-opioid antagonist that produces a selective and long-lasting reduction in ethanol consumption with reduced aversion. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2007 June; 31(s2) p 197A (# 754). http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1530-0277.2007.00412.x Steensland P, Simms S, Halftermeyer J, Nielsen C, Richards J, Bartlett S. Potential role of the neurokinin-1 (NK1) receptor in alcohol consumption. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2007 June; 31(s2) p 87A (# 315). http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/j.1530-0277.2007.00412.x Previous Employment: The University of Queensland, Australia - School of Pharmacy |