Development of Central Nervous System Functioning in AD/HD: a Longitudinal Study. Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD) is a debilitating problem affecting 5% of children. AD/HD causes substantial school problems and predisposes the child to drug and alcohol abuse, marital breakdown, criminal prosecution and psychiatric problems in later life. At present we know very little about the underlying causes of the behavioural changes seen in this disorder. This project will clarify the matu ....Development of Central Nervous System Functioning in AD/HD: a Longitudinal Study. Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (AD/HD) is a debilitating problem affecting 5% of children. AD/HD causes substantial school problems and predisposes the child to drug and alcohol abuse, marital breakdown, criminal prosecution and psychiatric problems in later life. At present we know very little about the underlying causes of the behavioural changes seen in this disorder. This project will clarify the maturational abnormalities in brain function that occur from childhood through to adulthood in this disorder. Better understanding of the normal developmental paths of this disorder will have major clinical benefits as it will allow the development of more optimal treatment plans for these children.Read moreRead less
Are there common mechanisms for the inhibition of fear? Disorders of fear and anxiety affect up to 28% of Australians across their lives. This project studies how the brain inhibits fear and anxiety. It has four National Benefits. First, the knowledge generated by this project will contribute to coherent theoretical accounts of fear inhibition. Second, it will increase Australia's competitiveness and reputation in experimental psychology and behavioural neuroscience. Third, it will provide novel ....Are there common mechanisms for the inhibition of fear? Disorders of fear and anxiety affect up to 28% of Australians across their lives. This project studies how the brain inhibits fear and anxiety. It has four National Benefits. First, the knowledge generated by this project will contribute to coherent theoretical accounts of fear inhibition. Second, it will increase Australia's competitiveness and reputation in experimental psychology and behavioural neuroscience. Third, it will provide novel insights into ways of reducing anxiety and fear among sufferers of clinical anxiety disorders. Finally, it will provide internationally competitive training opportunities for Australian students.
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The regulation of fear and attention: From genes to the brain to behaviour. Exposure to dangerous events elicits fear concomitant with attentional processing of environmental stimuli accompanying those events. However this fear and attention are typically inhibited so that they are restricted to dangerous events or stimuli which signal them. This project studies the role of endogenous opioids in the inhibition of fear and threat-related attention. It studies opioid inhibition in terms of its con ....The regulation of fear and attention: From genes to the brain to behaviour. Exposure to dangerous events elicits fear concomitant with attentional processing of environmental stimuli accompanying those events. However this fear and attention are typically inhibited so that they are restricted to dangerous events or stimuli which signal them. This project studies the role of endogenous opioids in the inhibition of fear and threat-related attention. It studies opioid inhibition in terms of its consequences for gene transcription, learning, and attention. It will provide the first integrated analysis of fear inhibition, from the level of the gene to the brain to behaviour. Thus, the project will provide significant insights into the biological complexity underpinning vulnerability to anxiety and fear.Read moreRead less
Predicting danger: The nature, consequences, and neural mechanisms of predictive fear learning. This project has four major national benefits. First, it addresses a fundamental scientific issue from a novel perspective to increase knowledge. By combining innovative approaches to study how the brain predicts danger, it will shed light on the relationship between brain and behaviour. Second, the project will contribute significantly to Australia's international competitiveness and reputation in ex ....Predicting danger: The nature, consequences, and neural mechanisms of predictive fear learning. This project has four major national benefits. First, it addresses a fundamental scientific issue from a novel perspective to increase knowledge. By combining innovative approaches to study how the brain predicts danger, it will shed light on the relationship between brain and behaviour. Second, the project will contribute significantly to Australia's international competitiveness and reputation in experimental psychology. Third, the knowledge generated by this project has the potential to improve the welfare of Australians by addressing an increasingly important health problem - anxiety. Finally, the project provides outstanding, internationally competitive, training opportunities for Australian students in Psychology.Read moreRead less
Models of adolescent drug use and its consequences. Recent concerns surround the impact of drug abuse - particularly binge drinking, inhalant abuse and cannabis use - on the mental health of adolescents. Early drug use is associated with mental health problems although the mechanisms involved are not well characterised. The present proposal aims to use animal models to characterise substance abuse that occurs during the adolescent period and to investigate its effects on brain and behaviour. Inc ....Models of adolescent drug use and its consequences. Recent concerns surround the impact of drug abuse - particularly binge drinking, inhalant abuse and cannabis use - on the mental health of adolescents. Early drug use is associated with mental health problems although the mechanisms involved are not well characterised. The present proposal aims to use animal models to characterise substance abuse that occurs during the adolescent period and to investigate its effects on brain and behaviour. Increasing our knowledge of the causes and consequences of adolescent drug abuse will improve Australia's ability to confront this problem and to develop early interventions and treatments that minimise associated harms.Read moreRead less
Novel cellular functions of the microtubule-associated protein tau: Physiological and pathological implications. The social and economic burden of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is enormous, and by 2040 more than 500,000 Australians will suffer from this disease. A key histopathological hallmark of this and many other related diseases are insoluble deposits of the protein tau. Research into novel functions of tau in signalling and transport (both of which are heavily compromised in diseased brains) wi ....Novel cellular functions of the microtubule-associated protein tau: Physiological and pathological implications. The social and economic burden of Alzheimer's disease (AD) is enormous, and by 2040 more than 500,000 Australians will suffer from this disease. A key histopathological hallmark of this and many other related diseases are insoluble deposits of the protein tau. Research into novel functions of tau in signalling and transport (both of which are heavily compromised in diseased brains) will be followed directly by assay development for tau-directed drug screening. The national benefit of this research is manifold by (a) patenting new data, (b) developing treatment strategies for an un-curable disease, and (c) establishing links to the growing Australian biotech industry (in addition to existing links to international pharmaceutical companies).Read moreRead less
Age-dependent effects of cannabinoids on emotion, cognition and vulnerablity to addiction. Cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug in Australia so understanding the effects of this drug is of great importance. There is little of no basic research on cannabis currently occurring in Australia. Yet such research is critical in resolving the ambiguities and difficulties inherent in our understanding of the drug. The importance of increasing our understanding of the long-term effects of the dr ....Age-dependent effects of cannabinoids on emotion, cognition and vulnerablity to addiction. Cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug in Australia so understanding the effects of this drug is of great importance. There is little of no basic research on cannabis currently occurring in Australia. Yet such research is critical in resolving the ambiguities and difficulties inherent in our understanding of the drug. The importance of increasing our understanding of the long-term effects of the drug on young developing brains is particularly evident. The information gained in the current project will serve to inform medical and scientific communities, government policy makers, as well as the broader Australian community. Read moreRead less
Australian Laureate Fellowships - Grant ID: FL0992409
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$2,996,243.00
Summary
The neural bases of decision-making. This research focuses on the neural bases of decision making, a general capacity affected by normal ageing, disorders associated with neurodegeneration including dementia, major psychiatric conditions and drug addiction. Changes in the neural systems that result in the cognitive and emotional dissociation reflected in these disorders constitute the highest health, economic and social capital attrition burden to Australia of any disease group, a burden that is ....The neural bases of decision-making. This research focuses on the neural bases of decision making, a general capacity affected by normal ageing, disorders associated with neurodegeneration including dementia, major psychiatric conditions and drug addiction. Changes in the neural systems that result in the cognitive and emotional dissociation reflected in these disorders constitute the highest health, economic and social capital attrition burden to Australia of any disease group, a burden that is only predicted to increase as the population ages. Understanding these changes in neural systems and their specific behavioural effects is, therefore, of critical importance and will ultimately provide new targets for treatment and rehabilitation.Read moreRead less
Rhombomeric Topography of Structures in the Adult Mouse: Evidence from Avian Homologies and Transgenic Mice. The brainstem of birds has been shown to be formed by a line of segments, like carriages of a train. The same arrangement exists in the embryos of mammals, but is hidden in the adult mammalian brain. We will transfer our detailed knowledge of bird brains to make a maps of the brainstem segments in adult mice. We will then test this map with special gene markers which will reveal the occul ....Rhombomeric Topography of Structures in the Adult Mouse: Evidence from Avian Homologies and Transgenic Mice. The brainstem of birds has been shown to be formed by a line of segments, like carriages of a train. The same arrangement exists in the embryos of mammals, but is hidden in the adult mammalian brain. We will transfer our detailed knowledge of bird brains to make a maps of the brainstem segments in adult mice. We will then test this map with special gene markers which will reveal the occult segmental pattern in adult mice. This work will give us a new way of understanding the organisation of brainstem centres that control breathing, cardiovascular functions and emotional states.Read moreRead less
Linkage Infrastructure, Equipment And Facilities - Grant ID: LE0560916
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$323,400.00
Summary
Magnetic resonance in humans: Equipment for neuroscience studies. The structure, function and biochemistry of the human brain can now be assessed non-invasively using magnetic resonance (MR) techniques. A 3 Tesla MR facility with half its time available for research has recently been established at POWMRI. This application seeks state-of-the-art equipment so that the facility can optimise its research potential and enhance its scientific output. Research is directed to understanding how the nor ....Magnetic resonance in humans: Equipment for neuroscience studies. The structure, function and biochemistry of the human brain can now be assessed non-invasively using magnetic resonance (MR) techniques. A 3 Tesla MR facility with half its time available for research has recently been established at POWMRI. This application seeks state-of-the-art equipment so that the facility can optimise its research potential and enhance its scientific output. Research is directed to understanding how the normal brain functions, how deficits in function develop, and how the function and structure of the brain change with age. This grant will help establish an internationally-competitive, broadly-based facility which is dedicated to understanding the human brain.Read moreRead less