Neurodevelopmental Role Of Susceptibility Genes For Autism Spectrum Disorders: From Genes To Behaviour
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$482,968.00
Summary
Autism is a developmental neuropsychiatric syndrome characterised by impairments in three principal domains: social interaction, language and behavioural inflexibility. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) refers to a group of neurodevelopmental syndromes with the common feature of dysfunctional reciprocal social interaction. In this project we will investigate the role of genes that increase the risk of ASD in the development of behaviours using an animal model. This work will lead to a better unders ....Autism is a developmental neuropsychiatric syndrome characterised by impairments in three principal domains: social interaction, language and behavioural inflexibility. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) refers to a group of neurodevelopmental syndromes with the common feature of dysfunctional reciprocal social interaction. In this project we will investigate the role of genes that increase the risk of ASD in the development of behaviours using an animal model. This work will lead to a better understanding of the genetic basis of ASD.Read moreRead less
Genes Important For Early Brain Development Are Also Important For Adult Brain Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$850,346.00
Summary
I committed to understanding of how the brain develops, grows and regenerates. My laboratory is active in finding a cure for brain injury following brain trauma or brain ischemia. I have discovered that the genes that drive neuron migration and wiring in the fetus also function in the adult brain to improve neuron survival and regeneration. Probing the function of these genes will deliver twin benefits in preventing brain disorder in the newborn and treating brain disease in the adult.
Development of normal brain function requires information transfer and integration from outside and within the brain. Normal brain wiring is guided by genetic and environmental cues, whose relative contributions remain controversial. This project investigates the physiological and behavioural consequences of abnormal brain wiring, and the potential for controlled environments and targeted interventions to overcome the deficits. Relevance includes neurotrauma as well as mental illnesses.
The mammalian cerebral cortex is an area of the brain responsible for all higher order cognitive processes. I investigate how connections from between the two cerebral hemispheres during embryonic and foetal development, thus enabling the brain to coordinate information from the two sides of the body. Malformations of these connections cause mental retardation and sensory and motor deficits. I want to understand how these brain defects occur and how best to treat them.
Blood-brain Barrier And White Matter Damage In The Immature Rat Brain Following Systemic Inflammation
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$353,173.00
Summary
Clinical obstetric and paediatric studies have identified an association between intrauterine infection occurring around two thirds of the way through pregnancy, premature birth and a specific form of damage to the brain of the newborn. This damage mainly affects white matter tracts. These tracts are aggregations of nerve fibres that make the connections between different parts of the brain and may result in cerebral palsy or other neurological disorders. The association between maternal infecti ....Clinical obstetric and paediatric studies have identified an association between intrauterine infection occurring around two thirds of the way through pregnancy, premature birth and a specific form of damage to the brain of the newborn. This damage mainly affects white matter tracts. These tracts are aggregations of nerve fibres that make the connections between different parts of the brain and may result in cerebral palsy or other neurological disorders. The association between maternal infection and brain damage, one form of which is cerebral palsy, is well established from clinical epidemiological studies, but the biological mechanism of this link is unknown. The CIs' group has recently shown that the condition can be reproduced in neonatal rats at a stage of brain development in the rat that is equivalent to the critical time in human brain development when infection may be associated with brain damage. The CIs' group has shown that an induced inflammatory state similar to a bacterial infection, results in damage to blood vessels in the white matter and is associated with changes in white matter, as occurs in affected babies. The purpose of this study is to understand the nature of the damage to white matter blood vessels and the mechanisms by which materials in blood, which in the normal brain do not pass from the blood to the brain across the blood-brain barrier, are able to do so via the inflammation damaged blood vessels. The study also aims to show whether it is components of the blood entering the brain via the damaged blood vessels that are responsible for the damage to white matter in the immature brain. The outcome should lead to development of ways to improve clinical care of women who acquire infections during pregnancy.Read moreRead less
Targeting Of Callosal Axons To Duplicate Cortical Areas In The Contralateral Hemisphere
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$600,785.00
Summary
The two sides of the brain communicate via a large fibre tract called the corpus callosum. This proposal investigates how the corpus callosum is formed during embryonic and postnatal development. Specifically, we investigate how the axons that make up the corpus callosum are able to locate their precise target in the contralateral hemisphere so that the brain circuit they form will be functional. We have developed a new mouse model to discover the fundamental mechanisms regulating how the brain ....The two sides of the brain communicate via a large fibre tract called the corpus callosum. This proposal investigates how the corpus callosum is formed during embryonic and postnatal development. Specifically, we investigate how the axons that make up the corpus callosum are able to locate their precise target in the contralateral hemisphere so that the brain circuit they form will be functional. We have developed a new mouse model to discover the fundamental mechanisms regulating how the brain is wired in order to function correctly.Read moreRead less
Guidance Mechanisms Regulating The Development Of Axonal Projections From The Cingulate Cortex.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$484,236.00
Summary
The corpus callosum is the largest fibre tract in the brain and connects neurons in the left and right cerebral hemispheres. A subpopulation of callosal axons arise from neurons in the cingulate cortex and are the first to cross the midline. Defects in activation or wiring of the cingulate cortex are strongly implicated in acute pain, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. This proposal investigates how the commissural projections of the cingulate cortex become wired up during development.
3D Histological And MRI Atlases Of Brain And Spinal Cord For Research And Clinical Practice
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$876,005.00
Summary
This project uses imaging techniques to produce the next generation of maps of the central nervous system. It will advance our understanding of the organisation and structure of the brain and spinal cord of humans and experimental animals, paving the way for the development of psychotherapeutic drugs and more accurate interventions on the human brain. The new maps will help those who study the brain of patients with diseases such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s or animal models of these diseases.
Normal And Abnormal Development Of Brain Wiring And Its Impact On Brain Function
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$763,845.00
Summary
My laboratory is striving to understand how the patterns of neuronal connections form in the developing brain and how these underpin the functions of the brain throughout life. We use high-field magnetic resonance imaging to measure brain wiring and we investigate the genetic and environmental mechanisms causing developmental brain disorders that result in intellectual disability, autism, epilepsy and some mental illnesses.
Cellular And Molecular Regulation Of Interhemispheric Fusion
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$449,489.00
Summary
In the developing brain, the two cerebral hemispheres undergo interhemispheric fusion to allow commissural fibres to cross the midline. Lack of interhemispheric fusion results in agenesis of the corpus callosum and may manifest as an interhemispheric cyst in acallosal patients. This project will investigate the cellular and molecular mechanisms that regulate interhemispheric fusion, including removal of the leptomeninges, astroglial differentiation and the formation of adherens junctions at the ....In the developing brain, the two cerebral hemispheres undergo interhemispheric fusion to allow commissural fibres to cross the midline. Lack of interhemispheric fusion results in agenesis of the corpus callosum and may manifest as an interhemispheric cyst in acallosal patients. This project will investigate the cellular and molecular mechanisms that regulate interhemispheric fusion, including removal of the leptomeninges, astroglial differentiation and the formation of adherens junctions at the interhemispheric fissure to mediate fusion.Read moreRead less