Neuroendocrine Responses To Psychological Stress: Unmasking The Protective Role Of The Prefrontal Cortex.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$346,153.00
Summary
This project seeks to build up a picture of one of the mechanisms that the brain uses to protect our bodies from the potentially harmful effects of psychological stress. When we are subjected to psychological stress one of the consequences is the release of a hormone, corticosterone, into the blood-stream. This can be beneficial in the short-term as it helps our body redistribute its pattern of energy utilization in a way that helps in coping with an unexpected challenge. However, excessive secr ....This project seeks to build up a picture of one of the mechanisms that the brain uses to protect our bodies from the potentially harmful effects of psychological stress. When we are subjected to psychological stress one of the consequences is the release of a hormone, corticosterone, into the blood-stream. This can be beneficial in the short-term as it helps our body redistribute its pattern of energy utilization in a way that helps in coping with an unexpected challenge. However, excessive secretion of corticosterone due to excessive exposure to psychological stress can damage your health. For example, it can make you more susceptible to infection and also accelerate the rate at which your brain ages. The brain possesses certain mechanisms which try to limit the release of corticosterone when you are subjected to psychological stress. Unfortunately these mechanisms are not quite up to doing the necessary job under the conditions in which we live today, i.e. a very high level of psychological stress is a common feature of modern life. Nevertheless we believe that if we can properly understand these protective mechanisms in the brain, it may be possible to develop drugs which can boost their efficiency. In the long term this could greatly reduce ill-health in our society.Read moreRead less
TorsinA Mediated Dystonia, Functional Analysis And Molecular Models
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$479,817.00
Summary
The dystonias represent a group of movement disorders characterised by sustained muscle contraction, resulting in twisting and abnormal postures. Current treatment regimes may provide some measure of symptomatic relief, but are often unsatisfactory and limited by adverse side effects. The prevalence of dystonia is estimated at approximately 300 cases per million population. Dystonia is a complex disorder, the causes and disease mechanisms are not well understood. However, in the past 10 years se ....The dystonias represent a group of movement disorders characterised by sustained muscle contraction, resulting in twisting and abnormal postures. Current treatment regimes may provide some measure of symptomatic relief, but are often unsatisfactory and limited by adverse side effects. The prevalence of dystonia is estimated at approximately 300 cases per million population. Dystonia is a complex disorder, the causes and disease mechanisms are not well understood. However, in the past 10 years several genes have been identified that can cause dystonia. The overall aim of this proposal is to characterise a gene that causes dystonia when disrupted. Understanding the function of this gene may significantly advance our understanding of this disorder. Using these results, we aim to model dystonia in cellular and animal systems; these may provide powerful insight into the molecular pathway(s) perturbed in dystonia and a means to develop novel therapeutic approaches to alleviate or prevent the disorder.Read moreRead less
Early life overfeeding - mechanisms for programming obesity and long-term immune dysfunction. Early life overfeeding can lead to obesity and related changes in adulthood. With this study we will discover how overfeeding can permanently alter an animal's development so that its body weight and immune functions are dysregulated. The outcomes will facilitate appropriate design of animal experiments considering the impact of neonatal programming. They will also contribute to more efficient feeding p ....Early life overfeeding - mechanisms for programming obesity and long-term immune dysfunction. Early life overfeeding can lead to obesity and related changes in adulthood. With this study we will discover how overfeeding can permanently alter an animal's development so that its body weight and immune functions are dysregulated. The outcomes will facilitate appropriate design of animal experiments considering the impact of neonatal programming. They will also contribute to more efficient feeding protocols for meat production in agriculture and identify targets for risk management and for preventing and ameliorating early life overfeeding effects in humans. This investigation therefore has clear benefits to the social, economic, and health aspects of obesity and to basic science and agriculture.Read moreRead less
Insulin transport into the central nervous system. This project aims to understand transportation of peripheral insulin into the central nervous system and how it maintains energy balance. Insulin is essential for normal physiological functioning in the periphery and central nervous system, but some circumstances, including high-fat diets, reduce insulin signalling in the brain. This project examines the mechanisms of insulin transport into the central nervous system, and may improve our underst ....Insulin transport into the central nervous system. This project aims to understand transportation of peripheral insulin into the central nervous system and how it maintains energy balance. Insulin is essential for normal physiological functioning in the periphery and central nervous system, but some circumstances, including high-fat diets, reduce insulin signalling in the brain. This project examines the mechanisms of insulin transport into the central nervous system, and may improve our understanding of blood brain barrier insulin transport and dysfunction.Read moreRead less
Central Muscarinic Receptors as Novel Drug Targets for Parkinson's Disease and Schizophrenia. Psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders such as schizophrenia and Parkinson's disease are linked to alterations in the activity of neurons in the brain containing the chemical dopamine. Other types of brain neurons containing the chemical acetylcholine regulate dopamine neuron activity by acting on acetylcholine receptors located on dopamine neurons. We aim to determine how these important recepto ....Central Muscarinic Receptors as Novel Drug Targets for Parkinson's Disease and Schizophrenia. Psychiatric and neurodegenerative disorders such as schizophrenia and Parkinson's disease are linked to alterations in the activity of neurons in the brain containing the chemical dopamine. Other types of brain neurons containing the chemical acetylcholine regulate dopamine neuron activity by acting on acetylcholine receptors located on dopamine neurons. We aim to determine how these important receptors regulate dopamine neuron activity using genetically modified mice deficient in acetylcholine receptors, together with newly developed physiological methods and new acetylcholine receptor drugs. These studies will foster the design of novel acetylcholine receptor drugs as effective pharmaceutical treatments of neurological and psychiatric disorders related to brain dopamine dysfunction.Read moreRead less