Cobre – Center for Neroplasticity at the University of Puerto Rico

The COBRE Center for Neuroplasticity at the University of Puerto Rico will co-sponsor the 10th Annual Meeting of the Puerto Rico Physiological Society, Saturday, October 22.

Oral and poster Presentation Awards for Undergraduates and Graduate Students

New NIH R21 grant at UPR School of Medicine!

The Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology and the Department of Microbiology of the School of Medicine of the Medical Sciences Campus of the University of Puerto Rico

An interdisciplinary multi-campus center

Will implement improvements to the research infrastructure of Puerto Rico and will support a critical mass of investigators with shared scientific interests in the neurosciences.

INTEREST IN COBRE NEUROPLASTICITY CENTER NIEF FACILITIES, SEEDS AND PILOT RESEARCH PROJECTS

The NIH-NIGMS Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence (COBRE) Program seeks to augment and strengthen institutional biomedical research capabilities by expanding and developing biomedical faculty research through support of a multidisciplinary center.

Island-wide Universities Open Call Collaborative Seeds Proposals (CCSP)

The COBRE PHASE 2 Center for Neuroplasticity at the University of Puerto Rico aims to foster development of junior investigators into competitive researchers working on projects with broad biomedical significance

We Are COBRE

Centers of Biomedical Research Excellence augment and strengthen institutional biomedical research capabilities by expanding and developing biomedical faculty research capability through support of a multidisciplinary center led by a peer-reviewed, NIH-funded investigator with expertise central to the theme of the grant proposal.

MENTORED PROJECTS

Demetrio Sierra,

PhD

Came to the UPR Medical Sciences Campus from the Massachusetts General Hospital / Harvard University in 2014.

Jose Colón,

PhD

Alpha-7 nAChR: Potential Therapeutic Target for Obesity Induced Cognitive Decline

Alfredo Ghezzi,

PhD

Epigenetic control of transcription dynamics in long-term alcohol neuroadaptation

Amaya Miquelajáuregui,

PhD

Role of microglial α7nAChR in diet induced brain inflammation.

Andrew Seeds

Assistant Professor

Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus

Pilots Projects

Stefanie Hampel,

PhD

Establishing an experimental model for probing the neural and molecular basis of abnormally repetitive behavior

Bianca Torres,

PhD

Polymorphism in neuroplasticity-related genes and its association with anxiety and depressive symptoms severity in Caribbean Hispanic patients

José E. Lizardi Ortiz

PhD

Role of Nicotinic Alpha 7 Autoreceptors in Striatal Cholinergic Interneurons

Steven Van Belleghem

PhD

Chromatin remodeling during butterfly brain development

Collaborative Seeds Projects

Dr. Nadezhda Sabeva

& Dr. Antonio H. Martins:

Ex vivo and in vivo models of Gulf War Illness Allow for Mechanistic Studies and the Search for Antidotes

& Dr. José Colón:

Synthesis of Biological Active Amino Derivatives and Multi-target Drugs for the Treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease

Dr. Priscila Sanabria

& Dr. Carlos Jiménez:

Xylazine effects on morphine-induced prefrontal cortex neuroplasticity

Dr. Yancy Ferrer

& Dr. Valance Washington:

Age-dependent involvement of inflammation associated receptors in hippocampal plasticity and neuroprotection after an ischemic insult

Dr. Luis Negrón

& Dr. José Rivera:

Lipid Dendrimer Nanoparticles for the Encapsulation of Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor and Simvastatin as a Non-Invasive Approach to Promote Neuroplasticity

Dr. Yancy Ferrer

& Dr. Antonio H. Martins:

Nuclear G-coupled Kinin-B2 Receptors in a Human hCMEC/D3 Blood Brain Barrier Cell title: Nuclear G-coupled B2 receptor

Request for Application or Funding Opportunities

Research news

COBRE Center for Neuroplasticity labs participated in an initiative aimed at strengthening Puerto Rico’s competitive capacity

March 5, 2026

The Puerto Rico Industrial Association announced the signing of a strategic agreement with the Molecular Sciences Research Center (MSRC) to structurally integrate advanced scientific research with local manufacturing operations. The initiative responds to the need to connect the island’s scientific infrastructure with its strong industrial base, enabling critical research and development processes, historically carried out in centers located in…

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The COBRE Center for Neuroplasticity co-sponsored the 33rd Annual Puerto Rico Neuroscience Conference

December 8, 2025

Jaime Benítez Rexach Amphitheater, University of Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus. The conference was attended by over 400 students and faculty from institutions across the island. Dr. Yancy Ferrer (photo), COBRE Phase II Pilot Project leader, served as President of the Society and Organizing Committee Chair. Keynote speakers included: Dr. Dhananjay “DJ” Bambah-Mukku, Assistant Professor…

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Recents Publications

July 8, 2025

Velazquez C.

The work is a collaborative effort between several campuses: the UPR-Cayey, UPR-Carolina and UPR-MSC Integrated Informatics Services facility RCMI-RCC-IIS in collaboration with the Institute of Neurobiology.

May 28, 2025

Rivera A, Bracho-Rincón D, Miller MW.

Localization of Cholecystokinin/Sulfakinin Neuropeptides in Biomphalaria glabrata, an Intermediate Host for Schistosomiasis. J Comp Neurol. 2025 Jan;533(1):e70016. doi: 10.1002/cne.70016. PMID: 39825709; PMCID: PMC11841659.

May 1, 2025

Vaasjo LO, Miller MW.

A conserved gastropod withdrawal circuit in Biomphalaria glabrata, an intermediate host for schistosomiasis. J Neurophysiol. 2024 May 1;131(5):903-913. doi: 10.1152/jn.00390.2023. Epub 2024 Mar 13. PMID: 38478883; PMCID: PMC11383391.

July 11, 2023

Laura C. Vicente-Rodríguez, Amanda C. Torres-Arroyo, Anthony Hernández-Vázquez, Mariela Rosa-Casillas, Dina P. Bracho-Rincón, Paola Méndez de Jesús, Martine L. Behra, Mohamed R. Habib, Xiao-Nong Zhou, Joshua J. C. Rosenthal, Mark W. Miller

The FMRF-NH2 gated sodium channel of Biomphalaria glabrata: Localization and expression following infection by Schistosoma mansoni