Cellular Stress

神经系统疾病(如阿尔茨海默氏症、帕金森氏症和相关痴呆症)影响着50多万加拿大人，每年花费医疗保健系统约100亿美元，这对整个加拿大人口来说是一种巨大的情感和经济消耗。这些疾病是由受影响的人大脑中异常和有毒的蛋白质聚集引起的，导致记忆丧失、精神错乱和运动功能受损。这些聚集体是如何以及为什么形成的，这是一个重要的问题，可以为预防和治疗提供见解。科学家们正在努力寻找与这些神经疾病的发展相关的基因或环境因素。蒂莫西·奥达斯博士研究的是一种天然的、可逆的有毒蛋白质团块，在这些有毒团块中，几乎相同的蛋白质聚集体迅速形成，并对特定的环境信号做出反应而分解。他的团队正在使用培养的哺乳动物细胞和模型生物(例如果蝇和酵母)来了解这一基本的生物途径是如何工作的。他们的目标是：(1)确定哪些蛋白质在特定条件下聚集，(2)破译这些天然蛋白质团如何帮助细胞在严酷的压力下生存下来，以及(3)识别可以控制这种聚集过程的分子和药物。通过更多地了解这一细胞途径，奥达斯博士的团队将加强我们对细胞适应性的理解，并可能为开发治疗那些患有衰弱神经疾病的人提供药物途径。

Neurological disorders (e.g, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and related dementias) affect over 500,000 Canadians and cost the healthcare system ~$10 billion per year, representing a significant emotional and economic drain on the entire Canadian population. These diseases are caused by abnormal and toxic protein clumping in the brains of affected individuals, leading to memory loss, confusion, and impaired motor function. How and why these aggregates form is an important question that may provide insights into prevention and treatment. Scientists are struggling to find genes or environmental factors associated with the development of these neurological disorders. Dr. Timothy Audas studies a natural, reversible counterpart to these toxic clumps, where nearly identical protein aggregates form rapidly and disassemble in response to specific environmental signals. His team is using cultured mammalian cells and model organisms (e.g. fruit flies and yeast) to understand how this basic biological pathway works. Their goal is to: (1) determine which proteins aggregate under specific conditions, (2) decipher how these natural protein clumps help cells survive harsh stress treatments, and (3) identify molecules and drugs that can control this aggregation process. By learning more about this cellular pathway Dr. Audas' team will enhance our understanding of cell adaptability, and potentially generate pharmaceutical avenues for the development of therapeutic remedies to treat those afflicted with debilitating neurological disorders.