Biography

As Associate Dean, Professor Kitchen is responsible for leading the research strategy of the Faculty of Health & Medical Sciences.  Appointed as a Professor of Neuropharmacology in 1997, he was formerly Head of the Pharmacology group and Deputy Head of School in Biomedical and Molecular Sciences at Surrey.  He graduated with a 1st Class honours degree in 1977, and gained his PhD in 1980 from the University of London.

In 2006 he was elected a Fellow of the British Pharmacological Society and in 2010 elected a Fellow of the Society of Biology.  His primary area of research for over 30 years has been in opioid neuropharmacology and he has been a major academic contributor to the opioid field in the UK and world-wide.  Surrey has gained international recognition for work on opioid system development in the brain and for neuroanatomical studies in opioid gene knockout mice in relation to furthering our understanding of pain and drug addiction.  In collaboration with molecular genetics groups in France we were the first to publish the phenotype of an opioid receptor knockout mouse (Nature 383, 819-823, 1996), and Professor Kitchen has led Euorpean consortia funded by substantial EC grants studying the genomics of drug addiction. At a national level he is Co-Chair of the UK Heads of Pharmacology and Therapeutics and has served on MRC advisory and grant boards.  

He has been a sub-panel member on two UK research assessment exercises; on Allied Health Professions and Studies in RAE 2008 and on Allied Health Professions, Dentistry, Nursing and Pharmacy for REF 2014. At an international level he is founder and was President of the European Opioid Conference until 2011, has served three elected terms on the Executive Committee of the International Narcotics Research Conference, and is a member of the IUPHAR opioid receptor nomenclature sub-committee.

Research Interests

Professor Kitchen’s current research projects are listed below.  He has supervised over 30 PhD students and is actively looking for prospective PhD students interested in these project areas.  Students that are on line for a first or upper second class honours degree in one of the biomedical sciences, or equivalent, should send their cv by e-mail:

Gene Knockout and drug addiction

In collaboration with groups in France, Germany, Spain and the US we are characterising the phenotype and neuroanatomy of transgenic mice deficient in opioid receptor, opioid peptide and dopamine receptor genes, as part of a major EC funded project (8.1million Euro) studying the genetics of drug addiction.  The application of transgenic technology to our understanding of opioid receptor heterogeneity is currently being studied with knockouts of all four opioid receptors (MOP, DOP, KOP and NOP receptor and the endogenous peptide ligands (enkephalins, dynorphins and nociceptin) which act at these receptors.  In addition we are carrying out behavioural studies and measures of neurotransmitter release using microdialysis in gene knockout mice to characterise the neurobiological changes that occur in response to addictive drugs.  

Heterodimerisation of Receptors in the CNS

G-protein coupled receptors (GPCRs) are targets for many drugs and it was thought they existed as single units, but there is recent evidence from studies in cell systems that some of these receptors can form complexes known as heterodimers.  If these heterodimers exist under physiological conditions, this would be very important as the heterodimer sees drugs differently from the monomer forms, and this could give us novel drug targets.  Two of these receptors, the KOP and DOP opioid receptors, have been proposed to heterodimerise in cell systems.  We are using a completely novel approach to determine if this happens in brain tissue.  It uses brains taken from single and double opioid receptor gene knockout mice, where either only monomer or heterodimer forms can exist.  By measuring the receptor labelling we will be able to determine whether opioid compounds interact with a monomer or heterodimer form of the KOP and DOP receptor.  This technique, we call subtraction autoradiography, has the potential to be used to distinguish monomer or heterodimeric interaction of any new drug that can be labelled, and where appropriate gene knockout mouse tissue is available.

Neurobiological mechanisms of nicotine addiction

The focus of this investigation is on the psychological and neurobiological mechanisms involved in the modulation of nicotine cravings by exercise and the role of stress in mediating nicotine withdrawal.  During the human component of the project, cigarette cravings, CO levels, and exercise are being be monitored in humans in the laboratory using standards assessment methods.  The in vivo animal component of the project includes the investigation of mechanism of nicotine craving with the use of gene knockout models of addiction and neurochemical techniques including in vivo microdialysis, electrophysiology and receptor autoradiography.  A related project is investigating the role of a₇ nicotinic subunits in cocaine and opioid addictive processes with the use of well characterised addictive related behavioural tests (e.g. conditioned place preference, behavioural sensitization, locomotion) in wild type andtransgenic animals.  The neurochemical effect of a₇ nicotinic subunits in opioid and cocaine addiction is being investigated with the use of quantitative autoradiography and freely moving microdialysis.

Publications

Teaching

Prof Kitchen has taught CNS pharmacology to undergraduate and postgraduate students on Biochemistry, Pharmacology, Neuroscience, Nursing and Toxicology degree programmes at Surrey. 

Departmental Duties

• Associate Dean, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences
• University Warden of Sports Colours
• Director, Experimental Biology Unit
  

Affiliations

• 1980-Present British Pharmacological Society (Elected Fellow in 2006)
• 2011-Present Society of Biology (Elected Fellow)