Molecular mechanisms and physiological consequences of growth factor receptor transactivation in the central nervous system

我们的研究涉及确定脑细胞如何发育，生存和相互交流。我们研究了三种不同类型的系统如何在脑细胞中相互作用：1）经典的“神经递质”，如血清素和多巴胺，2）生长因子，促进脑细胞生长和发育的蛋白质，以及3）控制脑细胞电特性的离子通道。过去人们认为，生长因子控制脑细胞的生长和存活，神经递质控制细胞与细胞的通讯。最近发现，生长因子也可以调节脑细胞通讯。另一个令人兴奋的发现是，神经递质如血清素可以“反式激活”生长因子系统。换句话说，血清素可以间接促进生长因子的活性。这意味着当血清素在大脑中释放时，它会激活血清素受体，但也会激活生长因子受体。为了充分了解脑细胞如何生长、交流和生存，我们需要发现转录激活通路对整个大脑功能的贡献。高度专业化的人员培训：在未来五年内，我们的研究计划将培养六名研究生和五名本科生。我们的目标是培养这些学生使用几个重要的研究技术，并鼓励他们成为成功的科学家，在他们未来的职业生涯在学术机构，制药和生物技术公司，政府，和其他部门。总体影响：实现我们的研究目标将显着推进我们的基本了解脑细胞的活动和功能。我们的发现将影响神经科学领域，并在分子水平上更好地了解神经递质，生长因子和离子通道。

Our research involves identifying how brain cells develop, survive, and communicate with each other. We study how three different types of systems interact in brain cells: 1) classical "neurotransmitters" such as serotonin and dopamine, 2) growth factors, proteins that promote brain cell growth and development, and 3) ion channels that control the electrical properties of brain cells. It used to be thought that growth factors controlled brain cell growth and survival and neurotransmitters controlled cell to cell communication. Recently it has been discovered that growth factors can also regulate brain cell communication. Another exciting discovery is that neurotransmitters such as serotonin can "transactivate" growth factor systems. In other words, serotonin can promote growth factor activity indirectly. This means that when serotonin is released in the brain, it will activate serotonin receptors but will also transactivate growth factor receptors. In order to fully understand how brain cells grow, communicate, and survive, we need to discover what contributions transactivation pathways make to overall brain function. TRAINING OF HIGHLY QUALIFIED PERSONNEL: Over the next five years our research program will train six graduate and five undergraduate students. Our goal is to train these students to use several important research techniques and encourage them to become successful scientists in their future careers at academic institutions, drug and biotech companies, in government, and in other sectors.OVERALL IMPACT: Achieving the objectives of our research will significantly advance our basic understanding of brain cell activity and function. Our findings will impact the fields of neuroscience as well as providing a better understanding about neurotransmitters, growth factor, and ion channels at the molecular level.