The Hume lab studied ion channels
Professor Hume studied the function of proteins that mediate the signaling properties of neurons and their development at the molecular level. His lab developed a widely used method for labeling both living and chemically fixed neurons. Importantly this technique allowed researchers to visualize and follow developing neurons in many living organisms. The paper describing this method has been cited over 1,000 times. Much of his research utilized molecular manipulations of neurotransmitter receptors to dissect how they work. The most significant of these papers identified a site in glutamate receptors that controls the ability of the brain to learn and forget. He also collaborated with colleagues to identify a key protein required for damaged neural axons to degenerate and the molecular and functional identification of a Parkinson’s disease risk protein as an ion channel found in lysosomes, which are organelles found in cells required for normal cellular signaling and metabolic function. During Professor Hume’s career he trained 11 postdoctoral fellows, 14 Ph.D. students and 17 undergraduate honors students and was a valued colleague for many other researchers both at the University of Michigan as well as elsewhere.
