Bio

Dr. Eells obtained his bachelor’s degree from Miami University and Ph.D. from Southern Illinois University. He trained as a postdoctoral researcher at University of North Carolina Chapel Hill/Nation Institute of Environmental Health Sciences followed by a postdoctoral fellowship at the National Institute for Diabetes Digestive and Kidney Diseases in Bethesda, MD. He worked at Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine and East Carolina University School of Medicine prior to moving to North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine.

The overarching theme of Dr. Eells’ research is understanding how the environment can alter brain function. Various environmental experiences including infections, early life stressors, dietary restrictions, disrupted circadian rhythms, or exposure to toxins can increase the risk of developing neurologic and neuropsychiatric disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease, schizophrenia, and depression. The major focus of the lab is on the function of dopamine neurons with a particular emphasis on the regulation of various transcription factors linking environmental experience with regulation of expression of proteins needed to make and handle dopamine.
Current projects include 1) understanding how the transcription factor Nurr1 regulates dopamine neurotransmission and dopamine neuron survival, 2) investigating the long-term consequences of SARS-CoV-2 infection on neuroinflammation to understand how COVID-19 can damage dopamine neurons and potentially increased risk of developing neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s disease, and 3) investigating how the omega 3 fatty acid docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) alters the function of dopamine neurons and can affect the accumulation of alpha synuclein, a protein critical for the damage and loss of dopamine neurons in Parkinson’s disease.
Dr. Eells’ primary teaching responsibilities include gross anatomy, neuroanatomy, and neuroscience taught to the first-year veterinary students.

Area(s) of Expertise

Neurobiology Neuroanatomy Anatomy

Publications

• Deciphering the miR-29c-3p / TET3 regulatory axis within the SARS-CoV-2-infected midbrain , Virology (2026)
• SARS-CoV-2 infection of substantia nigra pars compacta induces expression of miR-330-5p at 10 days post-infection , Journal of General Virology (2025)
• Emerging Role of Kinin B1 Receptor in Persistent Neuroinflammation and Neuropsychiatric Symptoms in Mice Following Recovery from SARS-CoV-2 Infection , Cells (2023)
• Lipid metabolism in dopaminergic neurons influences light entrainment , Journal of Neurochemistry (2023)
• COVID-19 infection enhances susceptibility to oxidative-stress induced parkinsonism , bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) (2022)
• Acyl-CoA synthetase 6 is required for brain docosahexaenoic acid retention and neuroprotection during aging , JCI Insight (2021)
• Hypothalamic kinin B1 receptor mediates orexin system hyperactivity in neurogenic hypertension , Scientific Reports (2021)
• Nurr1 deficiency shortens free running period, enhances photoentrainment to phase advance, and disrupts circadian cycling of the dopamine neuron phenotype , Behavioural Brain Research (2021)
• Laser Capture Microdissection - A Demonstration of the Isolation of Individual Dopamine Neurons and the Entire Ventral Tegmental Area , Journal of Visualized Experiments (2015)
• Immunomodulator expression in trophoblasts from the feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV)-infected cat , Virology Journal (2011)

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