Hewlet G. McFarlane was born in Guyana and came to the United States as a teenager. After attending high school on Long Island New York, he went to Syracuse University where he did both his undergraduate and graduate work. He earned his Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from Syracuse University in 1998, after which he joined the Kenyon Department of Psychology and Neuroscience Program. He also did post-doctoral research training in Neuropharmacology in the Department of Psychiatry at Case Western Reserve University.

His teaching revolves around the effects of both healthy and diseased/damaged brains on behavior. His research interests, broadly defined, focus on the relationship(s) between brain chemistry and behavior with particular emphasis on mental illness. Specifically, he is interested in the interactions between neurotransmitter systems, the effects of drugs on the brain, and the relationship between brain chemistry and mental illness. His current research project focuses on developing mouse models of autism and the interaction between tyrosine availability in the brain and regional dopamine release.

Hewlet maintains ongoing research collaborations with the Laboratory of Behavioral Neuroscience at National Institute of Mental in Bethesda, MD, and the Department of Psychiatry at the Veterans Affairs Medical Hospital in Brecksville, OH. He is a member of Society for Neuroscience, the International Behavioral and Neural Genetics Society, The Midwestern Psychological Association, and the Faculty for Undergraduate Neuroscience.

Areas of Expertise

Neuroscience, autism, schizophrenia/depression

Education

Ph.D. Syracuse University, 1998
M.S. Syracuse University, 1995
B.S. Syracuse University, 1991

Selected Publications

McFarlane, H.G., Kusek, G.K., Yang, M., Phoenix, J.L., Bolivar, V.J., and Crawley, J.N. (2007). Autism-like behavioral phenotypes in BTBR Ttf/J mice. Genes, Brain and Behavior, OnlineEarlyArticles, June, 2007.

Alex, K.D., Yavanian, G.J., McFarlane, H.G., Pluto, C.P., and Pehek., E.A (2005). Modulation of Dopamine Release by Striatal 5-HT2C Receptors. Synapse, Vol.55, pp.242-251.

Pehek, E.A., McFarlane, H.G., Maguschak, K., Price, B., and Pluto, C.P (2001). M100, 907, a selective 5-HT2A antagonist, attenuates dopamine release in the rat medial prefrontal cortex. Brain Research, Vol. 888, Issue 1, pp.51-59.

Courses Taught

PSYC 304 Neuropsychology
PSYC 305 Physiological Psychology
NEUR 112 Introduction to Neuroscience
PSYC 111 Honors Introductory Psychology: Basic Processes
PSYC 347 Psychopharmacology
NEUR 471 Topics in Neuroscience