Neural Functions of the Delta-Opioid Receptor

Dr. Ying Xia is Professor and Vice-Chairman for Research of the Department of Neurosurgery at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston, and Professor of Neuroscience at The University of Texas at Houston Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences. He obtained his medical training at Soochow Medical College, China and his Master Degree of Medicine and Doctoral Degree of Medical Science (Ph.D.) in Neurobiology and Integrative Medicine at Shanghai Medical University, China. Dr. Xia joined Yale University School of Medicine for his postdoctoral training and established his laboratory at Yale. During his 22-year academic career at Yale University School of Medicine, he was appointed as a faculty member in 1993 and promoted to Associate Professor in 2002. He joined the University of Texas Medical School at Houston in May 2010. Dr. Xia’s research has been consecutively supported by various funding agencies such as NIH, America Heart Association, March of Dimes Foundation, Cerebral Palsy Foundation and The Vivian L. Smith Neurologic Foundation since the establishment of his laboratory. He has been invited to deliver speeches by many academic institutions and international conferences. He is a reviewer for many international journals and serves as a grant reviewer for NIH, US National Science Foundation, other American and European foundations, Hong Kong University Grants Committees, and Natural Science Foundation of China.

• Preface.- Current research on the δ-opioid receptor: From neuroprotection against hypoxia/ischemia to broad neural functions.- Recent history on delta opioid receptors and ligands: Biased mechanisms, and opioid delta-mu and delta-kappa receptor heteromers.- Evolutionary distribution of the δ-Opioid Receptor: from invertebrates to humans.- Developmental distribution of the δ-opioid receptor in mammalian brains.- The Role of δ-opioid receptors in brain ionic homeostasis under physiological condition.- The δ-opioid receptor and stabilization of brain ionic homeostasis in hypoxia/ischemia.- Regulation of membrane transporters by delta-opioid receptors.- Neuroprotective interactions between delta-opioid receptors and glutamatergic signaling mediate hypoxia-tolerance in brain.- δ-Opioids and Neurogenesis.-  Delta Opioid Receptor and Peptide: Hibernation for Stroke Therapy.- An important role of the δ-opioid receptor in electroacupuncture-induced protection against ischemic brain injury.- Delta Opioid Receptor in Cerebral Preconditioning.- Delta-opioid receptor-mediated protection and mitochondria.- The delta-opioid system in the brain: A neglected element in Parkinson’s disease?.- Are δ-opioid receptors involved in deep brain stimulation?.- Acupuncture, opioid receptors and Na+ channels: A novel insight into inhibition of epileptic hyperexcitability.- Delta Opioids in Protection of the Heart and Brain.- The Various Functions of Opioids in Pathophysiological Conditions.

“Recent development in research dedicated to the function of δ-opioid receptors (DORs) is reviewed in this book. … Book may serve for graduated as well as undergraduated students who wish to get better insight into topics covered by individual chapters. It will be indispensable reference book for scientists working on any aspect of opioid research.” (Lubica Lacinova, General Physiology and Biophysics, Vol. 35 (4), 2016)