RUI: Thyroid Hormone Regulation of the GABAa Receptor and Sleep/Waking EEG

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IBN-9412109 Joseph Martin The goal of this research is to understand how thyroid hormones influence the adult mammalian brain. In adulthood, the metabolic rate of many cell types is accelerated when thyroid hormones enter the tissue. This is not true of brain cells. However, some of the most serious consequences of excess secretion of thyroid hormones include changes in sleep patterns and induction of seizures. Preliminary evidence from the PI's laboratory indicates that thyroid hormone in the brain may bind to GABA-A receptors. These GABA-A receptors are proteins on the outside membranes of nerve cells that are responsible for the inhibitory effects of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), a chemical messenger between nerve cells. Studies will be performed in rats to determine the effects of thyroid hormones on the GABA-A receptor binding, the subsequent effects of this binding on the responses of the nerve cells and the resultant electroencephalogram (scalp recordings of brain waves that show changes in brain activity such as those that occur during sleep or seizures). These studies will determine the biological significance of the action of thyroid hormone on brain tissue as compared to its action on other tissues in the body.