Dr. Amara’s laboratory has focused on the structure, function, and cellular physiology of neurotransmitter transporters, proteins that are present on the plasma membranes of neurons which contribute to the clearance and recycling of neurotransmitters. She studies the biogenic amine and excitatory amino acid transporters -- major targets for antidepressants and psychostimulant drugs such as cocaine and amphetamines.

Dr. Amara received a B.S. in Biological Sciences from Stanford University and a Ph.D. in Physiology and Pharmacology from the University of California, San Diego and held faculty positions at Yale University School of Medicine, at the Vollum Institute in Portland Oregon and as a Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigator at Yale and Oregon.

Dr. Amara is an elected member of the National Academy of Sciences (2004), a fellow of the AAAS (2007) and is a past-President of the Society for Neuroscience (2011).