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Martha Gillette is a chronobiologist and neurobiologist with research focusing on the effects of circadian clocks on integrative brain function, metabolism, and the molecular mechanisms involved in signaling pathways. Gillette is currently serving as the director of Neuroscience program at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. She is also a professor in the Cell and Developmental Biology, Molecular and Integrative Physiology, and Bioengineering departments.

Education and Early Career
Martha Gillette attended Grinnell College, where she received a B.A. in Biology. She went on to receive an M.S. in Zoology from the University of Hawaii and a Ph.D. in Developmental Biology from the University of Toronto in 1976. Gillette obtained her postdoctoral training from the University of California, Santa Cruz in Developmental Biology. In 1978, Gillette began her professorship at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she has remained as both a researcher and a professor.

SCN as the Central Endogenous Circadian Clock in Mammalian Brain
Gillette's experiment showed that the suprachiasmatic nucleus(SCN) generates ~24h neuronal oscillations in rat hypothalamic brain slice in vitro. In this experiment, researchers used extra-cellular and whole-patch clamping to record the hypothalamic activity of rodent brain sample as it responded to an injected current. Her findings established SCN's integrative and regulative role in controlling circadian rhythms The use of in vitro SCN slice also allowed her to investigate temporal windows of sensitivity to circadian phase-shifting by different resetting stimuli, including secondary messengers, hormones, and neuropeptide.

To study the molecular mechanisms through which light synchronizes the circadian oscillation of the SCN, Gillette treated rat SCN in vitro with glutamate, NMDA, and nitric oxide. The SCN has calcium dependent nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity, and antagonists of NMDA and NOS inhibits the effects of glutamate while NOS inhibitor blocked the light-induced phase shifts.

The Cellular Mechanisms of Per Gene Activation and Photic Entrainment in Mammals
Gillette had previously demonstrated how melatonin, a nonphotic Zeitgeber, can directly reset the rat SCN in vitro. In an experiment involving testing SCN slices of entrained rats in vitro, the authors showed how both the activation of the CRE element in the Per gene and expression of the Per gene are necessary for glutamate-induced phase shifts, demonstrating that the CRE activation of Per1 acts as the gatekeeper for genomic response to light. The findings of Dr.Gillette’s experiments also add to the non-parametric model of entrainment, which is proposed by Pittendrigh and predicts instantaneous phase-shifts by light. She then discovered how E-box mediated transcriptions of Per1 and Per2 are necessary for proper melatonin signaling during the resetting of SCN clock at dusk. This allowed her to draw a connection between the role of the Per gene in photic phase-resetting and melatonin's nonphotic action.

Circadian Redox Oscillation and Neuronal Excitability
It had already been established that redox oscillations, changes between the transfer of electrons within cells, occur according to a circadian rhythm across a variety of animal tissues. Redox reactions are also involved in other necessary cell processes, such as cellular respiration and metabolism processes. Gillette has done extensive research into the relationship between the circadian rhythm of redox state and neuronal excitability. In their experiment, she and her colleague Mia Y. Bothwell asked the question of whether the interdependent relationship between circadian redox oscillations and circadian time cues only occurred within the SCN. They proposed the idea that this relationship also occurred outside of the SCN.

Gillette first discovered that SCN redox state exhibits self-sustained circadian oscillations, which requires the functional molecular clockwork of the Bmal1 gene. This ~24hr redox oscillation of SCN dictates its own neuronal excitability via non-transcriptional modulation of potassium (K+) channel. There is a relation in which redox state, which influences neuronal membrane potential, can also influence membrane excitability. In the daytime, there is a reduced membrane environment where K+ currents are less prominent, resulting in depolarization and firing. At night, the opposite occurs: the environment is more oxidized and results in less firing as increased K+ currents cause hyperpolarization.

Exploring other regions of the brain for similar relationships, Gillette looked into the CA1 region of the hippocampus, where the circadian oscillation clock gene expression is anti-phase to the SCN. Her previous findings were replicated as the excitability of CA1 pyramidal neurons is regulated by a ~24 hr circadian redox oscillation that is opposite to the SCN.

Current Research
Gillette's current research at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) focuses on the relationship between the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) and cells in the hippocampus, as well as how those interactions are influenced by the changes in the circadian rhythm. In coordination with Dr. Jonathan V. Sweedler, an analytical chemist at UIUC, she has also been investigating the role of peptides in maintaining the circadian rhythm in the SCN. Through this collaboration, Dr. Gillette and Dr. Sweedler were able to create the most thorough peptidome in the SCN thus far. This peptidome is the typical order of a group of peptides which can be found inside the SCN of a cell. The neuro-engineering component of Gillette's lab has been conducting research on how to develop cells with specific functions to control the neuronal oscillation system in an attempt to ultimately build machines out of groups of cells. In addition, they are studying the function of miR125b, which has been associated with the degradation of mRNA and is being studied for clinical applications to cancer.

Besides research in chronobiology, Dr.Gillette has also done extensive research in neuroengineering and imaging. She optimized the material morphology of TiO2 with dopamine and demonstrated that dopamine-modified TiO2 laser desorption/ionization enhanced sensitivity and selectivity of mass spectrometry imaging. This improved imaging modality is promising for studying age-related neurochemical changes in the brain.

Awards and Honorary Positions

 * 1990-1991: Beckman Scholar, University of Illinois
 * 1995: AAS Fellow
 * 1997: Visiting Scholar, Friday Harbor Labs, University of Washington
 * 1996-1999: Dellow, Center for Advanced Study
 * 1997-2000: University Scholar
 * 2002: Outstanding Medical Scholars Program Advisor
 * 2004: Women in Neuroscience Mika Salpeter Lifetime Achievement Award
 * 2001-2003: Vice-Chair of Gordon Research Conference on Chronobiology
 * 2003-2005: Chair of Gordon Research Conference on Chronobiology
 * 2002-2005: Vice President of the National Sleep Foundation
 * 2006: Nominated, Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology
 * 2006-2008: President of the Society for Research on Biological Rhythms
 * 2008-2014: Leader of Restorative Neuroscience Translational Research Initiative
 * 2014-2017: National Science Foundation BRAIN EAGER
 * 2015-2018: NIH BRAIN Innovation Award
 * 1995-Present: Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science
 * 2004-Present: Cell and Developmental Biology Alumni Professor, UIUC
 * 2009-Present: Affiliate, Department of Bioengineering and Micro & Nano Labs

Professional Positions

 * President of the Society for Research on Biological Rhythms
 * Society for Neuroscience Program Committee
 * Executive Board, Sleep Research Society
 * Co-Coordinator of Research, NSF Science & Technology Center on Emergent Behavior of Integrated Cellular Systems (EBICS)
 * Regional Planning Committee, NIH Roadmap Initiatives, Regional Translational Research Centers
 * Presidential Task Force on Trainee-Related Programs, Sleep Research Society
 * Vice President and Board Member, The National Sleep Foundation, Washington, DC
 * Advisory Board, Society for Research on Biological Rhythms
 * Originator/Organizer, Neuroscience of Sleep & Circadian Biology Social/Datablitz, Society for Neuroscience
 * National Institutes of Health Study Section Member; Ad Hoc Reviewer
 * NSF/Division of Integrated Organismal Sciences; Ad hoc GRANT reviews.