The function of the heart and brain is shaped by excitatory and inhibitory influences acting at the cellular level. Many debilitating medical problems including arrhythmias, addiction, anxiety, depression, and pain are caused by an imbalance in cellular excitability. Work in our lab seeks to identify, elucidate, and interrogate cellular and molecular mechanisms that modulate cell excitability in the heart and brain. By pursuing this research, new approaches to diagnose, treat, or prevent medical problems linked to pathological excitability can be envisioned, developed, and optimized.