Matthew Holahan

Departmental Chair, Professor

• PhD (McGill)
• Email Matthew Holahan
• 613-520-2600 ext 1543

Dr. Holahan is a behavioural neuroscientist whose research explores the biological mechanisms underlying learning, memory, brain development, and neurological disease. His academic training and research experience span leading institutions including the University of Wisconsin, McGill University, and postdoctoral work at Northwestern University investigating transgenic mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease. His current research examines the development of cognitive function, the neurobiology of memory, preclinical models of psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders, and the effects of environmental factors on brain health.

A hallmark of Dr. Holahan’s research program is the integration of undergraduate and graduate students into all stages of the scientific process. Together, his laboratory has produced numerous peer-reviewed publications on memory, psychopharmacology, neurodegeneration, concussion, and brain injury, with many students serving as lead authors. Supported by funding from agencies such as NSERC, CIHR, and the Michael J. Fox Foundation, his work seeks to advance our understanding of how the brain changes in health and disease while providing students with hands-on research experience, critical thinking skills, and opportunities to contribute meaningfully to scientific discovery.

Eligible to supervise at the undergraduate and graduate levels.

Courses Taught:

• NEUR 1203: Neuroscience of Mental Health and Neurological Disease
• NEUR 2201: Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience

Scholarly Work & Research Interests:

Over the last several years, the research in the Holahan Lab has centered around the use of an integrative neuroscience approach to study influences on neural structure and function in the context of behaviour. The following are some of the areas of focus:

• Pre-clinical models of Parkinson’s disease and development of novel treatment strategies
• The role of the nucleus accumbens in long-term changes associated with nonspatial memories
• The acquisition and expression of remote spatial memories during the juvenile period and the influence of environmental and neurogenic alterations
• The impact of developmental manipulations on adult social memory and hippocampal function

Selected Publications

Increased Cholinergic Activity in Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: Preliminary Evidence from [18F]FEOBV PET Study. Shvetz C, Saint-Georges Z, Hamati R, Marshall S, Holahan M, Joutsa J, Tremblay S, Guimond S, Tuominen L. J Neurotrauma. 2026 May 19:8977151261449705. doi: 10.1177/08977151261449705. PMID: 42152806

Organic electrolyte gated field effect transistor for detecting alpha synuclein longitudinally in Parkinsonism mouse model. Johri S, Chan D, Massey RS, Knight D, DeRosa MC, Holahan MR, Prakash R. NPJ Biosens. 2025;2(1):39. doi: 10.1038/s44328-025-00057-8. Epub 2025 Nov 7. PMID: 41210581

Stabilizing microtubules increases acute cellular injury at high strain rates. Kang G, Webster E, Delgado D, Holahan MR, Banton R, Petel OE, Harris AR. Biophys J. 2025 Dec 2;124(23):4321-4334. doi: 10.1016/j.bpj.2025.10.024. Epub 2025 Oct 21. PMID: 41121664

Peri-adolescent bupropion treatment alters adult operant responding and is associated with reduced ΔFosB and thin spine density in the nucleus accumbens in rats. Smith SN, Holahan MR. Brain Res Bull. 2025 Sep;229:111442. doi: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2025.111442. Epub 2025 Jun 24. PMID: 40571264

The link between impact-induced tensile strain and dendritic spine morphology in porcine brain tissue. Hoffe B, Kang G, Thomson H, Banton R, Piehler T, Petel OE, Holahan MR. PLoS One. 2025 Feb 24;20(2):e0318932. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0318932. eCollection 2025. PMID: 39992913

Assessment of cFos labeling in the hippocampus and anterior cingulate cortex following recent and remote re-exposure to an unreinforced open field in preadolescent and postadolescent rats. Tzakis N, Ethier-Gagnon M, Epp T, Holahan MR. Behav Brain Res. 2025 Jan 5;476:115284. doi: 10.1016/j.bbr.2024.115284. Epub 2024 Oct 10. PMID: 39393683

Characterization of the Porcine Cingulate Sulcus Cytoarchitecture. Hoffe B, Hebert L, Petel OE, Holahan MR. J Comp Neurol. 2025 Feb;533(2):e70025. doi: 10.1002/cne.70025. PMID: 39912370

Selection of DNA aptamers that prevent the fibrillization of α-synuclein protein in cellular and mouse models. McConnell EM, Chan D, Ventura K, Callahan JP, Harris K, Hunt VH, Boisjoli S, Knight D, Monk ET, Holahan MR, DeRosa MC. Mol Ther Nucleic Acids. 2024 Jun 15;35(3):102251. doi: 10.1016/j.omtn.2024.102251. eCollection 2024 Sep 10. PMID: 39377064

Click here to see all publications.