John Graham

Professor Physical Therapy

Professor John Graham teaches in the foundational science curriculum of the DPT program. He is a neurobiologist, who has been a member of the Biology faculty of Emory & Henry, and prior to that was a Professor of Biology and Neuroscience at King University. He is an Adjunct - Clinical Associate Professor in the College of Clinical and Rehabilitative Health Sciences at ETSU, and has also served as an instructor at the University of Appalachia College of Pharmacy, and was a visiting scientist in the Department of Psychology at the University of Sheffield, in England.

Professor Graham has research publications on topics of neuroanatomy, neurophysiology and neuropharmacology. His research interests and background include work on motor systems and sensory systems in the brain, and a current focus is on Alzheimer’s disease. A number of his publications focus on sensorimotor integration, i.e. how processing of incoming sensory information leads to particular movement patterns. He has studied the anatomy and physiology of various pathways in the brain, using electrophysiology to understand the functional significance of connections between certain sensory and motor areas. He is also involved in a study investigating methods to improve soft-tissue integrity of soft-embalmed cadavers.

Professor Graham serves on the Faculty Advisory Committee of Emory & Henry, and the Admissions Committee and Curriculum Committee of the DPT Program.

Professor Graham is a member of the Society for Neuroscience, the American Association of Anatomists, and the Human Anatomy and Physiology Society.

Education

Ph.D., Pharmacology & Toxicology, Medical College of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, 1992
B.S., Biology, Davidson College, Davidson, NC, 1984

Teaching

DPT 700, 701 – Human Gross Anatomy and Human Gross Anatomy Lab: Course Master, lecturer, and lab instructor

DPT 703 – Human Neuroscience and Lab: Course Master, lecturer and lab director

DPT 716 – Pharmacology: Course Master and lecturer

BIOL 311 – Human Anatomy: Course Master, lecture and lab director

Research

Professor Graham’s most recent work has focused on three areas related to his teaching: neuroscience, gross anatomy, and educational methods. He is engaged in an aging and memory project utilizing rodents. This work utilizes animal models of aging to study some therapeutic compounds, which may reduce memory loss that accompanies aging and disease, such as Alzheimer’s. He is currently a member of a team studying a case of traumatic injury discovered in a cadaver in the gross anatomy lab. In addition, he has two other research projects that he is working on with DPT students. One of these looks at factors that might be predictive of success in a gross anatomy course, and the other is investigating what form of cadaver embalming is preferable for gross anatomy education. He is also part of a research project investigating techniques to improve the integrity of viscera and the nervous system tissues in soft-embalmed cadavers.

Grants: Summer Starter Grant, Emory & Henry College (internal) “How visual stimuli activate zona incerta neurons.” - 2015