Our vestibular system provides us with the important sense of balance. When it fails we suffer debiltating bouts of vertigo and dizziness. A great deal is known about how balance signals are sent from the inner ear to our brains, but virtually nothing is known about the important signals the brain sends to the inner ear. In this study we will use a new perparation develped in our laboratory to examine how these essential brain signals control the function of our balance organs.
Local Sleep In The Awake Brain: An Underlying Cause Of Neurobehavioural Deficits In Sleep Apnea?
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$582,330.00
Summary
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common sleep disorder which significantly impacts daytime functioning leading to excessive sleepiness, and problems with attention and thinking. Currently, the causes for cognitive impairment in OSA (including attentional lapses and performance deficits) are poorly understood. In the awake state, groups of neurons can briefly go “offline” as they do in sleep. These periods of “local sleep” may explain impaired task performance in OSA.
Impact Of Somatic Versus Dendritic Inhibition On Neuronal Output
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$1,047,686.00
Summary
The brain is made up of literally billions of neurons connected in complex networks. These neurons come in two primary flavors - excitatory and inhibitory - which work in balance. Too much excitation and the brain becomes epileptic, too much inhibitory and we go into a coma. This proposal focuses on the role of specific inhibitory cell types in regulating brain function, and has relevant to a range of neurological disorders from epilepsy, to schizophrenia to depression.
A DENDRITIC SUBSTRATE FOR THE CHOLINERGIC CONTROL OF NEOCORTICAL OUTPUT
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$898,340.00
Summary
The forebrain cholinergic system controls neocortical activity and cognitive function. This project will investigate the mechanisms by which the cholinergic system controls neocortical circuit activity in rodent models using advanced optical and electrical recording methods. The results will provide a foundation for the understanding of how dysfunction of the cholinergic system results in cognitive decline in humans, and identify new targets for improved treatment of human cognitive impairment.
Role Of Dendritic Information Processing In Visual Circuit Computations
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$895,244.00
Summary
Vision is the primary sensory modality in man, and its disturbance carries an enormous socio-economic burden. The dynamic operations of the neuronal assemblies that underlie vision are poorly understood, partly because of an incomplete description of the computational properties of visual neuronal circuits. The aims of the application are to mechanistically dissect defined computational operations of visual neural circuits using advanced electrophysiological and optical recording techniques.
Cognitive Inflexibility And The Development Of Pathological Habits In Brain Diseases
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$883,946.00
Summary
Pathological habits are observed in severe mental health conditions including dementia, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), schizophrenia, depression and addiction. This application aims to provide the mechanistic detail required for therapeutic targeting to restore flexible decision making in these conditions.
Role Of Calcium-activated Potassium Channels In Neuronal Excitability, Synaptic Plasticity And Sensory Processing
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$612,272.00
Summary
Disturbances in brain function, as occur in diseases such as epilepsy and schizophrenia, are associated with abnormal electrical activity. This electrical activity leads to increases in calcium inside nerve cells. In this project we plan to investigate how changes in calcium inside nerve cells regulates electrical activity, and how this impacts on the capacity of the brain to process and learn new information.
Targeting The Synaptic Actin Cytoskeleton In Alzheimer's Disease
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$840,741.00
Summary
Dementias have become one of the fastest growing sources of major disease burdens in developed countries with about one in fifteen Australians older than 65 being affected. We will study how pathological stimuli disrupt nerve cell connections in the brain by impacting on the cellular architecture at these connections. Findings from our study will provide profound new insights in how nerve cells communicate with each other and how this communication is breaking down in disease.
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.
A Potential Analgesic Target In A Novel Clinically-relevant Neuropathic Pain Pathway.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$685,811.00
Summary
Persistent pain arising from tissue damage, to nerves, muscles or joints for example, is devastating for patients and a huge social and economic burden. This work will investigate one of the pathways that goes awry after sensory nerves are damaged. These experiments will also test whether a drug being developed to treat Alzheimer's disease is effective at blocking the persistent nerve hypersensitivity that sometimes develops after injury.