Function And Physiological Role Of Inhibitory Circuits In The Amygdala
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$741,518.00
Summary
The amygdala is part of the brain that assigns emotional content to our sensory world and dysfunction of the amygdala is responsible for many anxiety-related disorders. Many anxiolytics, like valium, act on receptors in the amygdala. In this project we will study circuits in the amygdala that are modulated by anxiolytics. These studies will provide essential information in the understanding of anxiety disorders and help in developing drugs to treat these disorders.
Dendritic Activity And Neuronal Output During Sensory Perception
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$832,748.00
Summary
A fundamental goal of neuroscience is to understand how sensory experiences arise from activity in the brain. This is no easy feat and is the basis of the research in this proposal. Here, using cutting edge recording techniques, the activity of brain cells within the cortex will be measured during sensory-based behavioural tasks. This research will provide insight into therapeutic approaches to numerous brain diseases where sensory processing is compromised.
Persistent Firing In Cortical Interneurons: Mechanisms And Potential Anticonvulsant Role
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$520,552.00
Summary
The normal brain treads a fine line between too much electrical activity (epilepsy) and too little (sedation). We have discovered a class of brain cell that seems to behave like a sentinel, monitoring brain activity for signs of epilepsy. If a seizure occurs, this cell switches on an electrical brake that dampens excess activity. In this project we will study how this brake works and whether it really can inhibit seizures. Our research may lead to better treatments for epilepsy.
The Final Common Channel: Measurement Of Nerve Excitability In Epilepsy.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$301,376.00
Summary
Epilepsy may be due to either one single genetic mutation or a combination of several gene-environment interactions, affecting how ion channels function. It is not possible to directly interrogate channels in the living human brain but, because similar channels are found in peripheral nerve, much may be learned about aberrant channel function from peripheral nerve. This project aims to measure peripheral nerve excitability in epilepsy patients, using it as a marker of the final common pathway of ....Epilepsy may be due to either one single genetic mutation or a combination of several gene-environment interactions, affecting how ion channels function. It is not possible to directly interrogate channels in the living human brain but, because similar channels are found in peripheral nerve, much may be learned about aberrant channel function from peripheral nerve. This project aims to measure peripheral nerve excitability in epilepsy patients, using it as a marker of the final common pathway of channel dysfunction.Read moreRead less
The Biophysical Basis Of HCN Channels In Human Peripheral Nerve
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$50,315.00
Summary
Hyperpolarization-activated cyclic nucleotide-gated (HCN) channels play an important role as pacemakers in the cardiac and nervous systems. HCN channel dysfunction is implicated in a number of disorders including neuropathic pain and epilepsy. My aim is to determine the kinetics and voltage dependence of HCN channels in human peripheral nerve in vivo. Understanding these channels is a prerequisite to the development of safe targeted therapies against neuropathic pain.
Development Of Peripheral Sensory Pathways In Humans
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$477,504.00
Summary
To receive the appropriate information about the state of our muscles, joints, organs, and skin we need a properly 'connected' sensory system. Recent evidence suggests traumatic events during early development can alter sensory connections within the spinal cord. This can lead to debilitating movement disorders, digestive diseases, and increased pain. In this study we will examine how peripheral sensory fibres connect with the appropriate nerve cells in the human spinal cord during development.
The Coronary Vascular Bed, Shear Stress, Endothelial Signalling And Myocyte Electrophysiology
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$133,774.00
Summary
Physiologic control muscle performance includes a little understood signal from the walls of blood vessels stimulated by pressure and flow which effect muscle function. How this signal operates is controversial. We have developed a model which enables the evaluation of such signalling where changes in flow in the circumflex coronary artery induce easily measured local changes in electrophysiology which are confined to the territory of the circumflex coronary artery and which can be compared with ....Physiologic control muscle performance includes a little understood signal from the walls of blood vessels stimulated by pressure and flow which effect muscle function. How this signal operates is controversial. We have developed a model which enables the evaluation of such signalling where changes in flow in the circumflex coronary artery induce easily measured local changes in electrophysiology which are confined to the territory of the circumflex coronary artery and which can be compared with control values from the left anterior descending coronary artery territory. We propose to use this stable model to evaluate the origin, the transmission agent and the mechanism by which it alters the action potential duration.Read moreRead less