Etienne Cartier

Etienne Cartier, Ph.D., held the position of Research Instructor in the Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics at Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, as listed in the university's 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 catalogs. During his time at Vanderbilt, spanning approximately the early 2010s, he conducted research on the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying neurotransmitter transporter function, with a particular emphasis on the dopamine transporter (DAT) and its role in neurological conditions. His work contributed to understanding how genetic variants and interacting proteins affect dopamine signaling, providing insights into disorders such as autism spectrum disorder and potentially Parkinson's disease.

Cartier earned his Ph.D. from Oregon Health & Science University in 2004, completing a dissertation entitled 'Cell Biological and Functional Analysis of a Mutation in the KATP Channel that Causes Familial Hyperinsulinism' under the supervision of Show-Ling Shyng. Prior to Vanderbilt, his graduate research focused on ATP-sensitive potassium (KATP) channels, resulting in publications such as 'Defective trafficking and function of KATP channels caused by a sulfonylurea receptor 1 mutation associated with persistent hyperinsulinemic hypoglycemia of infancy' in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2001, 197 citations) and 'Sulfonylureas correct trafficking defects of ATP-sensitive potassium channels caused by mutations in the sulfonylurea receptor' in Journal of Biological Chemistry (2004, 116 citations). At Vanderbilt, key contributions included first authorship on 'Rare autism-associated variants implicate syntaxin 1 (STX1 R26Q) phosphorylation and the dopamine transporter (hDAT R51W) in dopamine neurotransmission and behaviors' in EBioMedicine (2015, 92 citations), which used Drosophila models to link rare variants to disrupted dopamine function in autism. Additional Vanderbilt-era works encompass 'A biochemical and functional protein complex involving dopamine synthesis and transport into synaptic vesicles' in Journal of Biological Chemistry (2010, 182 citations) and studies on PIP2 lipids regulating DAT activity. Following Vanderbilt, Cartier advanced to Senior Scientist in the Department of Medicine at Washington University in St. Louis, extending his expertise to mitochondrial dynamics, mitophagy, and peroxisome biogenesis, as seen in recent publications like 'Sensory-motor neuropathy in Mfn2 T105M knock-in mice and its reversal by a novel piperine-derived mitofusin activator' in Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics (2024).