PHARMACOLOGY FACULTY
Selected Publications
  • Baladi, M.G., Newman, A.H., and France, C.P. (2011) Influence of body weight and type of chow on the sensitivity of rats to the behavioral effects of the direct-acting dopamine receptor agonist quinpirole. Psychopharmacology, 217, 573-585. PMID:21544521
  • Li, J.-X., Crocker, C., Koek, W., Rice, K.C., and France, C.P. (2011) Effects of serotonin (5-HT)1A and 5-HT2A receptor agonists on schedule-controlled responding in rats: drug combination studies. Psychopharmacology, 213, 489-497. PMID:21174080
  • Li, J.-X., Koek, W., Rice, K.C., and France, C.P. (2011) Effects of direct- and indirect-acting serotonin receptor agonists on the antinociceptive and discriminative stimulus effects of morphine in rhesus monkeys. Neuropsychopharmacology, 36, 940-949. PMID:21209613
  • Li, J.-X., Koek, W., Rice, K.C., and France, C.P. (2010) Differential effects of 5-HT1A receptor agonists on the discriminative stimulus effects of the 5-HT2A receptor agonist 1-(2,5-dimethoxy-4-methylphenyl)-2-aminopropane in rats and rhesus monkeys. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, 333, 244-252. PMID:20053932
  • Baladi, M.G., Newman, A.H. and France, C.P. (2010) Dopamine D3 receptors mediate the discriminative stimulus effects of quinpirole in free-feeding rats. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, 332, 308-315. PMID:19797621
  • Becker, G.L., Gerak, L.R., Li, J.-X., Koek, W. and France, C.P. (2010) Precipitated and conditioned withdrawal in morphine-treated rats. Psychopharmacology, 209, 85-94. PMID:20127077
  • Li, J.-X., Unzeitig, A., Javors, M.A., Rice, K.C., Koek, W. and France, C.P. (2009) Discriminative stimulus effects of 1-(2,5-dimethoxy-4-methylphenyl)-2-aminopropane (DOM), ketanserin, and (R)-(+)-α-(2,3-dimethoxyphenyl)-1-[2-(4-fluorophenyl)ethyl]-4-pipidinemethanol (MDL100907) in rats. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics, 331, 671-679.
  • Koek, W., Mercer, S.L., Coop, A. and France, C.P. (2009) Behavioral effects of γ-hydroxybutyrate, its precursor γ-butyrolactone, and GABAB receptor agonists: time course and differential antagonism by the GABAB receptor antagonist 3-aminopropyl(diethoxymethyl) phosphinic acid (CGP35348). Journal of Pharmacaology and Experimental Therapeutics, 330, 876-883.
  • France, C.P., Li, J.-X., Owens, K.A., Koek, W., Tonery, G.M. and Daws, L.C. (2009) Reduced effectiveness of escitalopram in the forced swimming test is associated with increased serotonin clearance rate in food restricted rats. International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology, 12, 731-736.
  • Li, J.-X., Rice, K.C. and France, C.P. (2009) Discriminative stimulus effects of 1-(2,5-dimethoxy-4-methylphenyl)-2-aminopropane (DOM) in rhesus monkeys: antagonism and apparent pA2 analysis. Journal of Pharmacaology and Experimental Therapeutics, 328, 976-981.
Charles France
 

Charles France

Maharaj Ticku Professor of Pharmacology
Professor of Psychiatry
Ph.D., University of Michigan

Office: 210-567-6969
Email: france@uthscsa.edu

 

View video introduction to Dr. France's lab

 

Keywords

drug abuse, opioids, benzodiazepines, GHB, drug discrimination, self administration, dependence, withdrawal, neuropharmacology

 

Research Summary

Research in the France laboratory focuses on interactions between behavior and pharmacology and how those interactions impact the abuse liability of drugs. One major goal is to understand how the subjective and other abuse-related effects of drugs change as a consequence of particular behavioral and pharmacologic histories. Behavioral procedures developed in this laboratory permit systemic investigation of drug dependence and withdrawal and ongoing studies examine how these phenomena can be modified by behavioral and pharmacologic interventions.

 

A unifying theme of research in the France laboratory is the application of receptor theory to the planning, execution, and interpretation of behavioral pharmacological studies. Thus, many of our studies examine differences in efficacy and selectivity among potential drugs of abuse and potential treatment compounds, thereby identifying the pharmacologic characteristics of drugs that are most important for specific behavioral effects (e.g., reinforcing effects).

 

Current areas of research include the following: the role of different monoamine systems in modifying the abuse and therapeutic effects of opioids; the impact of different diets on the abuse and therapeutic effects of drug acting on serotonin or dopamine systems; interactions between GHB and other "club drugs"; the role of insulin receptor pathways in regulating dopamine transporter activity and sensitivity to stimulants; GABA receptor heterogeneity and the dependence liability of sedative/hypnotics; and the influence of physical dependence on the reinforcing effects of opioids.


• Appointments, Boards, Committees and Memberships •

Councilor - American Society for Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (ASPET) Governing Board - July, 2012


• Lab Personnel •

Dr. Lisa Gerak - Assistant Professor/Research

Dr. Gregory Collins - Instructor/Research

Dr. David Maguire - Postdoctoral Fellow

Dr. Katherine Serafine - Postdoctoral Fellow

Dr. Claudio Zanettini -Postdoctoral Fellow

Armando Hernandez - Senior Research Assistant

Hillary Halderman - Research Assistant

Shannon Malesky - Research Assistant

Ian McGraw - Research Assistant

Carlos Moreno - Research Assistant

Jeffrey Pressly - Research Assistant

Wenjuan Yang - Graduate Student

Cedric Henson - START-UP Student

Miguel Ibarra - START-UP Student

Ayele Mensah - Visiting Student