Max Sizemore

Ph.D.

Max Sizemore Headshot

Department of Basic Sciences

School of Natural Health Arts and Sciences

Seattle

AREAS OF FOCUS

Integrated Human Biology

Core didactic faculty for undergraduate (Integrated Human Biology program and general anatomy and physiology) and naturopathic medical students.

 

 

 

 

Biography

Max aspires to engage his students and provoke them to think critically about the subject matter while leading them towards three specific objectives: 1) an appreciation of the intricacies and beauty of the human body and the natural world, 2) an understanding of how specific biological systems function and interact to sustain life, and 3) the conceptual toolkit to tackle new biological questions. He uses a variety of strategies to achieve these goals, including providing historical and experimental context for course material, actively seeking dialogue with the students either one-on-one or through group projects, and using problem sets and activities to promote active learning. 

Education:

  • Postdoctoral Research Associate, Laboratory of Michael Dickinson, Dept. of Biology, University of Washington, 2011-2014
  • Ph.D. in Neurobiology and Behavior from the University of Washington, 2010
  • Research Associate, Laboratory of Roger Nicoll, Dept. of Cellular and Molecular Pharmacology, UCSF, 2000-2002
  • BA in Molecular and Cellular Biology from UC Berkeley, 2000

Awards & Honours

  • 2006 NIH Institutional Training Grant for Neurobiology
  • 2007 Society for Neuroscience Chapter Award - Pacific Chapter
  • 2012 Poster award, Janelia Farm Research Conference: Towards a common
  • framework to study the function of the insect central complex.
  • 2012 University of Washington Diversity Award for Community Building
  • (as a member of the Seattle Fandango Project).

Professional affiliations

  • Society for Neuroscience (SfN): 2006-2014
  • International Society of Neuroethology (ISN): 2012-2015
  • Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science
  • (SACNAS): 2006-present

Research philosophy

As a researcher, I have sought to understand how the brain processes and stores sensory information for use in guiding behavior. I have explored this question using a neuroethological approach: finding interesting and unique animal behavior and designing experiments to understand the neurobiological mechanisms that underlie such behavior. Specifically I have investigated the neural mechanisms of song learning in zebra finches and visually-guided walking in Drosophila. My current research interests revolve around exploring the efficacy of herbal insect repellents and combining the study of behavior and sensory neurobiology to discover new ways to deter invertebrate pests and disease vectors, such as mosquitos.

Schnell E, Sizemore M, Karimzadegan S, Chen L, Bredt DS, Nicoll RA.
Direct interactions between PSD-95 and stargazin control synaptic AMPA
receptor number. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2002 Oct 15;99(21):13902-7.


Sizemore M, Perkel DJ. Noradrenergic and GABA B receptor activation
differentially modulate inputs to the premotor nucleus RA in zebra finches. J
Neurophysiol. 2008 Jul;100(1):8-18.


Sizemore M, Perkel DJ. Premotor synaptic plasticity limited to the critical
period for song learning. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 2011
Oct 18;108(42):17492-7.