RONALD F. PFEIFFER, M.D.

Professor

Department of Neurology

The University of Tennessee College of Medicine

Address

The University of Tennessee Health Science Center

855 Monroe Avenue, Room 415

Memphis, TN 38163

Tel: (901) 448-6811; Fax: (901) 448-7440;

Education

M.D. Institution: University of Nebraska Medical Center

Postdoctoral: Walter Reed Army Medical Center

Research Interests

The primary focus of my research is on Parkinson's disease. Clinical trials of experimental antiparkinson medications are an ongoing facet of the research program. Gastrointestinal dysfunction in Parkinson's disease also has become a major focus of my research interest. Characterization of the clinical profile of GI dysfunction in Parkinson's disease has been undertaken and experimental treatment protocols also developed. More recently, collaborative studies investigating the underlying pathophysiology of GI dysfunction in Parkinson's disease have been instituted.

We are also investigating, via primary cell culture techniques, possible toxic factors to dopamine neurons along with studies of cytoskeletal changes that may have relevance to Lewy body formation.

Links

Neurology - Ronald F. Pfeiffer

Recent Publications

• Pfeiffer RF. Neuroinflammation and Parkinson disease: the silent battleground. Neurology. 2009 Nov 3;73(18):1434-5. Epub 2009 Oct 7. No abstract available. PMID: 19812378
• Pfeiffer RF. Parkinson disease. Nonmotor symptoms in Parkinson disease: the PRIAMO study. Nat Rev Neurol. 2009 Oct;5(10):531-2. PMID: 19794513
• Pankratz N, Kissell DK, Pauciulo MW, Halter CA, Rudolph A, Pfeiffer RF, Marder KS, Foroud T, Nichols WC; Parkinson Study Group-PROGENI Investigators. Parkin dosage mutations have greater pathogenicity in familial PD than simple sequence mutations. Neurology. 2009 Jul 28;73(4):279-86. PMID: 19636047
• Schilling BK, Karlage RE, Ledoux MS, Pfeiffer RF, Weiss LW, Falvo MJ. Impaired leg extensor strength in individuals with Parkinson disease and relatedness to functional mobility. Parkinsonism Relat Disord. 2009 Jun 25; [Epub ahead of print] PMID: 19560392
• Parkinson Study Group CALM Cohort Investigators. Long-term effect of initiating pramipexole vs levodopa in early Parkinson disease. Arch Neurol. 2009 May;66(5):563-70. PMID: 19433655
• Pankratz N, Nichols WC, Elsaesser VE, Pauciulo MW, Marek DK, Halter CA, Wojcieszek J, Rudolph A, Pfeiffer RF, Foroud T; Parkinson Study Group - PROGENI Investigators. Alpha-synuclein and familial Parkinson's disease. Mov Disord. 2009 Jun 15;24(8):1125-31. PMID: 19412953

view complete list of references (pubmed link)