How are memories stored in the brain? We know much about the brain regions involved in memory storage but we know little or nothing about how individual memories are represented and stored within those brain areas. The purpose of this project is to label and manipulate the specific subsets of brain cells that store individual memories. We will label memory-bearing cells in multiple brain regions and then ask how the connections between those cells encode learned information in the brain.
Unravelling A New Fatty Acid Pathway Involved In Neuroexocytosis And Memory
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$539,631.00
Summary
This proposal build on the establishment by our laboratory of the assay capable of detecting free fatty acids, with great accuracy and sensitivity. Using this assay we have uncovered a completely new pathway highlighting the production of saturated free fatty acids linked to learning and memory. We will fully define how this pathway is regulated in the brain.
Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive brain disease which is results in memory loss and brain cell death. All currently prescribed drugs treat the memory loss but are unable to stop the deterioration of brain cells. We have previously developed a class of drugs that reverse memory loss targeting – these drugs target a protein called IRAP. We recently found that these drugs also reduce the disease pathology. This research proposal aims to investigate the role of IRAP in the initiation or progressi ....Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive brain disease which is results in memory loss and brain cell death. All currently prescribed drugs treat the memory loss but are unable to stop the deterioration of brain cells. We have previously developed a class of drugs that reverse memory loss targeting – these drugs target a protein called IRAP. We recently found that these drugs also reduce the disease pathology. This research proposal aims to investigate the role of IRAP in the initiation or progression of Alzheimer’s disease pathology.Read moreRead less
The cross-disciplinary team performing this research will examine how mobile DNA elements found in brain cells move in response to learning and memory exercises in mice, and whether these changes generate an address system for parts of the brain to be turned on by specific experiences. This work has major implications for our fundamental understanding of how the brain works in healthy individuals, as well as people affected by neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative conditions.
Developmental Differences In The Role Of The Medial Prefrontal Cortex In Fear Regulation
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$354,481.00
Summary
This project explores the neural circuitry involved in fear expression early in life, and how early life experiences can affect this circuitry. A better understanding of the neural circuitry underlying fear regulation across development is essential given that the majority of anxiety disorders first appear in childhood or early adolescence.
Defining Reciprocal Neural Circuits That Regulate Appetite And Memory
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$341,935.00
Summary
How we remember meals influences how much we eat at later time points. This kind of memory likely comes from both the traditional brain areas associated with memory formation, and from areas associated with regulating appetite. How these two brain regions work together to help animals remember what they ate, where they found it, and whether they liked it is not known. This project investigates how these memories are formed and how they are used by animals to make decisions about future meals.
Exploring DNA Methylation As A Mechanism For Long-term Memory For Fear Extinction
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$415,322.00
Summary
Traumatic experiences are well remembered. In some cases, fear-related memories become debilitating and require therapeutic intervention to diminish the impact of these kinds of memories on daily living. Such therapies engage a process of inhibitory learning called fear extinction. Since anxiety disorders are particularly sensitive to relapse even after extensive exposure therapy, a deeper understanding of the extinction process is crucial if we are to develop more effective treatment protocols ....Traumatic experiences are well remembered. In some cases, fear-related memories become debilitating and require therapeutic intervention to diminish the impact of these kinds of memories on daily living. Such therapies engage a process of inhibitory learning called fear extinction. Since anxiety disorders are particularly sensitive to relapse even after extensive exposure therapy, a deeper understanding of the extinction process is crucial if we are to develop more effective treatment protocols for a variety of anxiety disorders.Read moreRead less
Emotionally traumatic experiences are well remembered and, in some instances, frequent reminders of these events can lead to the development of fear-related anxiety disorders such as phobia or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The experiments outlined in this proposal will examine how a novel epigenetic mechanism of gene regulation contributes to the transition from the retrieval of a fear memory to its inhibition through a process called extinction.
IL21, B-cell Proliferation And The Mechanism Of Memory Formation
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$981,896.00
Summary
Our immune system can ‘remember’ old infections, which is why we do not suffer from the same pathogen multiple times and why vaccines work. Much of this protection is due to memory B-cells, of which there are different kinds. We think the different memory B-cell subsets have different functions and understanding how they are made and how this is controlled will help us improve responses to critical infections – HIV, Flu – and in critical patient groups – aged people and transplant recipients.
Transient Receptor Potential Channels, Calcium And Alzheimer's Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$410,284.00
Summary
This research outlined in this application aims to uncover the molecular mechanisms that cause Alzheimer's disease (AD). Specifically the research will examine the mechanism by which Abeta, a protein which plays a central role in AD, causes neurodegeneration. The significance of this work is that it may help to identify new targets for AD drug development.