Glutamate is one of the major neurotransmitters in the brain. It plays a very important role in most brain functions such as the ability to learn and the development of memory, but the lack of control of glutamate concentrations in the brain also underlies many pathological changes that cause neurological disorders such Alzheimer's disease, disability following a stroke, motor neurone disease and Parkinson's disease. These diseases place an enormous social and economic burden on society and in o ....Glutamate is one of the major neurotransmitters in the brain. It plays a very important role in most brain functions such as the ability to learn and the development of memory, but the lack of control of glutamate concentrations in the brain also underlies many pathological changes that cause neurological disorders such Alzheimer's disease, disability following a stroke, motor neurone disease and Parkinson's disease. These diseases place an enormous social and economic burden on society and in order to better understand and treat these diseases it is important to understand some of the fundamental biochemical processes that underlie both normal and pathogical functions of the key neurotransmitter glutamate. This project will investigate how the concentrations of glutamate are tightly regulated to maintain normal brain function and also to avoid the potentially pathological consequences when these control mechanisms fail.Read moreRead less
Altered HCN Channel Expression And Function In Acquired Epilepsy
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$279,912.00
Summary
About 100 000 people currently suffer from epilepsy in Australia and of these about one third are poorly controlled with current anti-epileptic drugs. It is therefore important to continue to develop novel modes of treatment for this debilitating disease. This projects investigates an ion channel, known as the HCN channel, that is thought to be involved in making a brain epileptic. We explore how changes in this channel can make a brain more excitable. Also, our group is the first in the world t ....About 100 000 people currently suffer from epilepsy in Australia and of these about one third are poorly controlled with current anti-epileptic drugs. It is therefore important to continue to develop novel modes of treatment for this debilitating disease. This projects investigates an ion channel, known as the HCN channel, that is thought to be involved in making a brain epileptic. We explore how changes in this channel can make a brain more excitable. Also, our group is the first in the world to discover a mutation in this channel that is linked to epilepsy. We will also investigate how this mutation changes the channel properties to make a brain more likely to be epileptic. The HCN channel is an important target for developing anti-epileptic drugs. Understanding how changes in HCN channels make nerve cells and therefore nerve cell networks more excitable will help us develop better strategies for designing anti-epileptic drugs.Read moreRead less
Mechanism Of Signal Transduction And Receptor Activation In Ligand Gated Ion Channel Receptors
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$551,560.00
Summary
This project seeks to provide fundamental new information about the means by which neurotransmitter receptors, which mediate fast synaptic neurotransmission, operate. This knowledge is important since the Cys-loop family of ligand gated ion channel receptors are responsible for a wide range of neuronal signalling and the control of both excitatory and inhibitory receptors. The Cys-loop receptors are modulated by both therapeutic drugs (eg. benzodiazepines, barbiturates, antiemetics) and by recre ....This project seeks to provide fundamental new information about the means by which neurotransmitter receptors, which mediate fast synaptic neurotransmission, operate. This knowledge is important since the Cys-loop family of ligand gated ion channel receptors are responsible for a wide range of neuronal signalling and the control of both excitatory and inhibitory receptors. The Cys-loop receptors are modulated by both therapeutic drugs (eg. benzodiazepines, barbiturates, antiemetics) and by recreational drugs (eg. alcohol, nicotine). They are also targets for development of new therapeutic drugs, such as allosteric modulators of nAChR for memory enhancement, or modulating GlyR to relieve spasticity or chronic pain. The project will use a range of molecular advances made by this and other laboratories to clarify how neurotransmitters enable their receptors to activate and signal. This fundamental information is of major medical significance as defective synaptic transmission, caused by mutations in ligand gated ion channel receptors, gives rise to a number of neurological and psychiatric disease states. The ligand gated receptors are also major targets for therapeutic drugs and the information gained in this study may also provide insights into new ways in which drugs could be used to enhance or inhibit synaptic signalling.Read moreRead less