Anastas Popratiloff, M.D., Ph.D.
Associate Research Professor of Anatomy and Regenerative Biology
Director, GWUMC Center for Microscopy and Image Analysis

Address The George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences 2300 I Street NW, Ross Hall 215 Washington, DC 20037 Tel: 202-994-2164 Fax: 202-994-8885 Email: anaasp@gwumc.edu

I received my M.D. degree from the Medical University of Sofia (Bulgaria) in 1991 and a doctoral degree (Magna Cum Laude, Doctor der Medizin, Anatomy/Neuroscience) from the University of Cologne (Germany) in 2000. During my study of medicine (1985-1991), I was fascinated by anatomical research and teaching which inspired me to join the Anatomy Department as an MD student/instructor in Gross Anatomy. At the same time, I joined the neuroscience group of Drs. K. Usunoff and A. Palloff with a small student research project focusing on the vestibular system. My research efforts were rewarded with a medical student research award, which motivated me to pursue an academic research and teaching career after finishing the MD program.

Thus, shortly after graduation, I joined the Anatomy Department Faculty at the Medical University of Sofia as Assistant Professor of Anatomy. There I made contributions to the teaching of Gross Anatomy and Histology of the first and second year medical and dental students. During this period, I established with considerable institutional and State support and under Prof. Usunoff’s leadership a research program focusing on the brainstem circuits involved in motor control. This research program helped to train a number of bright and enthusiastic medical students in the aspects of scientific research, many of whom now integrate basic research into their careers as physicians.

In 1994, I took a sabbatical leave to join as a visiting postdoctoral scientist the laboratory of Dr. Aldo Rustioni at UNC Chapel Hill. Aldo’s exciting research had been focusing on the role of glutamate neurotransmission at the primary afferents in spinal cord and dorsal column nuclei. Previous visiting scholars in Aldo’s lab, such as Fiorenzo Conti, Silvia De Biasi, Marina Bentivoglio, and July Valtschanoff, had made significant contributions to our perception of sensory processing in the somatosensory primary afferents, and left behind a considerable set of methodologies, which were generously available to me. Aldo also had strong interests in abnormal sensory processing after peripheral nerve lesions, which I had seen as a great opportunity for myself. These were stimulating times, because on the one hand Dr. Robert Wenthold at NIDCD had developed specific antibodies for AMPA glutamate receptors, and meanwhile Dr. Richard Weinberg had been making a great deal of progress with a method for identification of AMPA immunolabeling using postembedding immunogold and transmission electron microscopy. My research in Aldo’s lab benefited from both of these advances, but most of all it was Aldo’s and Richard Weinberg’s spirit and professional attitude that influenced me most to further pursue an academic research career. In Aldo’s lab, I made several important scientific contributions to AMPA receptors research. These included, reported evidence with postembedding immunogold detection of AMPA receptors clustering at the postsynaptic densities and specificity of AMPA receptor subunits expression at different classes of somatosensory primary afferents. I also provided the first direct evidence that AMPA receptors abundance at the somatosensory primary afferent synapses is an activity modulated by peripheral nerve lesions. The latter results were not readily accepted by the scientific community in the late 90’s, but accumulating data suggest that presynaptic activity control of AMPA receptors abundance at synapses represents a major mechanism by which the glutamatergic synapse manages its strength and maintains plasticity.

In 1997, after a short stay back in Bulgaria, I moved to Cologne, Germany to join a project conducted between ENT hospital and the Department of Anatomy of the Faculty of Medicine, University of Cologne. My fellowship was generously supported by the Jean-Uhrmacher Foundation, affiliated with the ENT. I had another three years of fascinating research experience, with Dr. Streppel, Dr. W.F. Neiss, Dr. Angelov and a fruitful collaboration with Dr. J.M. Delgado-Garcia and A. Gruard from Seville, Spain. The group had already very well established itself in axonal regeneration research. They also had an excellent portfolio of anatomical techniques for studies of axonal regeneration, including fluorescence tracer labeling, sampling strategies and surgical paradigms. Most exciting was the fact that they were making a concerted effort to translate basic science into clinical practice. This was to a large degree possible because of the philanthropic support of Jean-Uhrmacher and the vision of the ENT hospital director Prof. E. Stennert.

In the Summer of 2000, I moved to the laboratory of Dr. Peusner in what was then the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, GWU. My trans-Atlantic move was motivated by several factors, including the proven record of the laboratory for high quality scientific research in the vestibular system, a distinct focus on potassium channels and AMPA receptors during development and after a surgical ganglionectomy, and interests in the primary vestibular transmission. In the laboratory of Dr. Peusner, I had the unique opportunity to integrate my previously acquired skills and to add new dimensions to my research. This was also possible because of the existing very collaborative infrastructure available at the GWUMC, including the resources available in the Center for Microscopy and Image Analysis and the Animal Research Facilities. In Dr. Peusner’s laboratory, I also had the unique opportunity to work with several brilliant colleagues who facilitated my research projects including: Dr. Peusner (P.I., Professor of Anatomy and Regenerative Biology), Dr. Mei Shao (Assistant Research Professor of Anatomy and Regenerative Biology), Dr. C. Giaume (consultant from France), S. Pollack (medical student and Gill Fellow, resident in Internal Diseases), Dr. J. Narvid (medical student, Summer lab assistant, resident), Drs. Petralia and Wang (senior research scientists and collaborators from NIDCD), and more recently Dr. J. Hirsh (consultant from France). My professional interactions with all of these people made it possible for me to make significant progress in my area of research, which contributed to achieving the common goals of the laboratory – a better understanding of vestibular signal processing during normal development and after peripheral lesions.

In March 2006, I became the Director of the Center for Microscopy and Image Analysis, a university-wide core facility providing shared resources and training in microscopic imaging and analysis. This duty I take with great enthusiasm. In July 1, 2006, I received an appointment as Associate Research Professor of Anatomy and Cell Biology. I contribute to the teaching of Microscopic Anatomy, a course directed by Dr. J. Krum, which I do with a great deal of pleasure. This computer-based virtual course transcends the limits of traditional teaching of Microscopic Anatomy, providing a more efficient framework for medical students to acquire knowledge of this subject.

Selected Publications

Popratiloff A, Peusner KD. 2007 Otolith fibers and terminals in chick vestibular nuclei. J Comp Neurol. 502(1):19-37.

Usunoff KG, Popratiloff A, Schmitt O, Wree A. 2006 Functional neuroanatomy of pain. Adv Anat Embryol Cell Biol. Springer.

Popratiloff A, Wang YX, Narvid J, Petralia RS, Giaume C, Peusner KD. 2004 AMPA receptor subunit expression in chick vestibular nucleus neurons. J Neurosci Res. 76(5):662-77. 

Popratiloff A, Giaume C, Peusner KD. 2003 Developmental change in expression and subcellular localization of two shaker-related potassium channel proteins (Kv1.1 and Kv1.2) in the chick tangential vestibular nucleus. J Comp Neurol. 461(4):466-82. 

Popratiloff AS, Streppel M, Gruart A, Guntinas-Lichius O, Angelov DN, Stennert E, Delgado-Garcia JM, Neiss WF. 2001 Hypoglossal and reticular interneurons involved in oro-facial coordination in the rat. J Comp Neurol. 433(3):364-79. 

Popratiloff AS, Neiss WF, Skouras E, Streppel M, Guntinas-Lichius O, Angelov DN. 2001 Evaluation of muscle re-innervation employing pre- and post-axotomy injections of fluorescent retrograde tracers. Brain Res Bull. 54(1):115-23. 

Angelov DN, Skouras E, Guntinas-Lichius O, Streppel M, Popratiloff A, Walther M, Klein J, Stennert E, Neiss WF. 1999 Contralateral trigeminal nerve lesion reduces polyneuronal muscle innervation after facial nerve repair in rats. Eur J Neurosci. 11(4):1369-78. 

Popratiloff A, Weinberg RJ, Rustioni A. 1998 AMPA receptors at primary afferent synapses in substantia gelatinosa after sciatic nerve section. Eur J Neurosci. 10(10):3220-30. 

Popratiloff A, Kharazia VN, Weinberg RJ, Laonipon B, Rustioni A. 1996 Glutamate receptors in spinal motoneurons after sciatic nerve transection. Neuroscience. 74(4):953-8.