* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Download Our brain is made of so many neurons, which communicate each
Aging brain wikipedia , lookup
Neurolinguistics wikipedia , lookup
Cognitive neuroscience wikipedia , lookup
Memory consolidation wikipedia , lookup
Haemodynamic response wikipedia , lookup
Donald O. Hebb wikipedia , lookup
Neuromarketing wikipedia , lookup
Signal transduction wikipedia , lookup
Long-term depression wikipedia , lookup
End-plate potential wikipedia , lookup
Neuroeconomics wikipedia , lookup
Environmental enrichment wikipedia , lookup
NMDA receptor wikipedia , lookup
Spike-and-wave wikipedia , lookup
Neuroinformatics wikipedia , lookup
Molecular neuroscience wikipedia , lookup
Neuropsychology wikipedia , lookup
Neurogenomics wikipedia , lookup
Holonomic brain theory wikipedia , lookup
Artificial general intelligence wikipedia , lookup
Neuroanatomy wikipedia , lookup
Neuroplasticity wikipedia , lookup
Synaptic gating wikipedia , lookup
Neurotransmitter wikipedia , lookup
Biology and consumer behaviour wikipedia , lookup
Neuromuscular junction wikipedia , lookup
Metastability in the brain wikipedia , lookup
Clinical neurochemistry wikipedia , lookup
Brain Rules wikipedia , lookup
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke wikipedia , lookup
Synaptic noise wikipedia , lookup
Nonsynaptic plasticity wikipedia , lookup
Synaptogenesis wikipedia , lookup
Neuropsychopharmacology wikipedia , lookup
FUNDING PROGRAM FOR NEXT GENERATION WORLD-LEADING RESEARCHERS Project Title: Mechanisms for synaptic transmission and synaptic disorders Name: Masaki FUKATA Institution: National Institute for Physiological Sciences 1. Background of research Our brain is made of so many neurons, which communicate each other through synapses (synaptic transmission). The efficacy of the synaptic transmission flexibly changes in response to various environmental stimuli (synaptic plasticity), and the synaptic plasticity has often been argued to play an important role in learning and memory. Disruption of this finely-tuned regulatory system causes abnormal synaptic transmission and then dysfunction of neuronal circuits, leading to various disorders such as epilepsy and dementia. 2. Research objectives In this project, we will elucidate the regulatory mechanisms for synaptic transmission and clarify the etiology of neuropsychiatric disorders by analyzing 1) a novel epilepsy-related ligand/receptor, “LGI1/ADAMs”, and 2) important regulators of various cell functions, “palmitoylating enzymes”, both of which were discovered by our own group. Our final goal is to address the fundamental question “How does our brain physiologically function and how is the system disrupted in brain diseases?”. 3. Research characteristics (incl. originality and creativity) Our research originality and creativity are based on our developed unique biochemical methods and our discovered novel molecules. We will also generate the model mice for human epilepsy in which the ligand “LGI1” is mutated. Thus, we will conduct the integrative research at the levels ranging from the molecule, cell (synapse), tissue (brain) to body. 4. Anticipated effects and future applications of research Ligands/receptors and enzymes are promising targets for most of all drugs in use today. Therefore, our research molecules, LGI1/ADAMs and palmitoylating enzymes, may become attractive targets for synaptic disorders, such as epilepsy. The gained findings would facilitate design of strategies to modify synaptic transmission.