Playing fast and loose with glutamate builds healthy circuits in the developing cortex

Event Information

Recording

Available

Host

Clinical and Experimental Epilepsy

Duration

70 minutes

Abstract

The construction of cortical circuits requires the precise formation of connections between excitatory and inhibitory neurons during early development. Multiple factors, including neurotransmitters, neuronal activity, and neuronal-glial interactions, shape how these critical circuits form. Disruptions of these early processes can disrupt circuit formation, leading to epilepsy and other neurodevelopmental disorders. Here, I will describe our work into understanding how prolonged post-natal astrocyte development in the cortex creates a permissive window for glutamate signaling that provides tonic activation of developing interneurons through Grin2D NMDA receptors. Experimental disruption of this pathway results in hyperexcitable cortical circuits and human mutations in the Grin2D gene, as well as other related molecules that regulate early life glutamate signaling, are associated with devastating epileptic encephalopathies. We will explore fundamental mechanisms linking early life glutamate signaling and later circuit hyperexcitability, with an emphasis on potential therapeutic interventions aimed at reducing epilepsy and other neurological dysfunction.

Topics

Grin2D NMDA receptors astrocyte development cortical circuits epilepsy glutamate hyperexcitable circuits interneurons neurodevelopmental disorders

Playing fast and loose with glutamate builds healthy circuits in the developing cortex

Recording

Video on demand

Event Information

Abstract

Topics

Related Seminars

Related Job Opportunities