- Professor, Biology, College of Arts and Sciences
I am interested in understanding how behavioral states are regulated at the molecular and genetic level. My lab addresses this complex question in the well-studied nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. Several physical aspects of this worm make it convenient for integrating whole organism system biology studies with genetic/molecular analysis of neurobiology and behavior. C. elegans is an anatomically simple organism; it is 1mm in size, and it contains ~ 1000 somatic cells, a third of which are neurons. The worm is also transparent, and thus every cell can be visualized by light microscopy. Behavioral mutants can be efficiently generated through standard chemical mutagenesis. In addition, gene functions involved in motivational and behavioral regulation can be determined by transgenic techniques.
My lab investigates the interplay between feeding and sex-specific mating behavior to understand how chemo/mechano-sensory and motor outputs are controlled under various physiological conditions. We study male mating by using genetics to de-construct this behavior into its fundamental sensory-motor components. We then use a combination of transgenics, pharmacology, classical genetics and laser microsurgery to understand how individual motor sub-behaviors are coordinated to produce gross behaviors during periods when the animal is food deprived, and when it is food satiated.
- Ph.D. in Microbiology, The University of Texas at Austin - (Austin, Texas, United States) 1996
- B.S. in Microbiology, The University of Texas at Austin - (Austin, Texas, United States) 1990
Academic Articles45
- Feng, M., Gao, B., Garcia, L. R., & Sun, Q. (2023). Microbiota-derived metabolites in regulating the development and physiology of Caenorhabditis elegans.. Frontiers in Microbiology. 14, 1035582.
- Goncalves, J., Wan, Y., & Garcia, L. R. (2022). Stearoyl-CoA desaturases sustain cholinergic excitation and copulatory robustness in metabolically aging C.elegansmales.. iScience. 25(4), 104082-104082.
- Sahu, A., Banerjee, S., Raju, A. S., Chiou, T., Garcia, L. R., & Versaw, W. K. (2020). Spatial Profiles of Phosphate in Roots Indicate Developmental Control of Uptake, Recycling, and Sequestration.. Plant Physiology. 184(4), 2064-2077.
- Goncalves, J., Wan, Y., Guo, X., Rha, K., LeBoeuf, B., Zhang, L., Estler, K., & Garcia, L. R. (2020). Succinate Dehydrogenase-Regulated Phosphoenolpyruvate Carboxykinase Sustains Copulation Fitness in Aging C.elegans Males.. iScience. 23(4), 100990-100990.
- LeBoeuf, B., Chen, X., & Garcia, L. R. (2020). WNT regulates programmed muscle remodeling through PLC- and calcineurin in Caenorhabditis elegans males.. Development. 147(9), dev181305.
- ARSC101 First Yr Seminar Instructor
- BIOL100 Horizons In Biology Instructor
- BIOL291 Research Instructor
- BIOL351 Fund Of Microbiol Instructor
- BIOL401 Critical Writing In Biol Instructor
- Banerjee, Swayoma (2017-07). Live Cell Imaging of Inorganic Phosphate Distribution in Multicellular Organisms Using a FRET Based Biosensor. (Doctoral Dissertation)
- Correa Nunez, Paola A. (2015-12). Dopamine Signaling Attenuates a Recurrent Neuronal Network during C. (elegans Copulation. Doctoral Dissertation)
- Guo, Xiaoyan (2014-08). Mechanisms of Mating-Behavior Deterioration in Early Aging Male C. (elegans. Doctoral Dissertation)
- Midkiff, James (2012-12). Artificial Stimulation of Cephalic Cholinergic Sensory Neurons Induces Mating-Like Motor Responses in Male Caenorhabditis elegans. (Master's Thesis)
- Liu, Yishi (2012-07). A Cholinergic Sensory-Motor Circuit Controls the Male Copulation Behavior in C. (elegans. Doctoral Dissertation)
