Rate My Professor Rell Parker

The Parker Laboratory, led by Parker, conducts translational research on neurologic disorders affecting both people and animals, with a primary emphasis on functional changes in the nervous system in response to chronic pain. Utilizing animal models, the lab examines pain pathophysiology across molecular, cellular, and behavioral scales, including alterations in nicotinic acetylcholine receptors and the role of the α6 subunit in chronic pain states. Additional research areas encompass spontaneous brain tumors in dogs as models for precision medicine, novel therapeutic approaches such as histotripsy for intracranial tumors, stereotactic brain biopsy methods, imaging biomarkers like the T2-FLAIR mismatch sign for oligodendrogliomas, postoperative seizure outcomes following brain tumor surgery, and pain-sleep relationships in breeds predisposed to Chiari-like malformation and syringomyelia, such as Cavalier King Charles Spaniels. Parker was named an iTHRIV Scholar from 2022 to 2024, supporting her mentored career development in clinical and translational research through the integrated Translational Health Research Institute of Virginia. Key publications include "First-In-DOg HISTotripsy for Intracranial Tumors Trial: The FIDOHIST Study" (2024), "Prognostic Value of Magnetic Resonance Imaging Defined Extent of Surgical Resection in Dogs With Intracranial Meningiomas" (2026), "Comparison of stereotactic brain biopsy techniques in dogs: neuronavigation, 3D-printed guides, and neuronavigation with 3D-printed guides" (2024), "The T2‐FLAIR mismatch sign as an imaging biomarker for oligodendrogliomas in dogs" (2023), and "Lynx1 balances neuronal activity through nicotinic acetylcholine receptor modulation" (2011).