Project Summary

Michael D. Ehlers, M.D., Ph.D. (Young Investigator 2000) of Duke University Medical Center, aims to determine the molecular mechanisms which regulate the localization and function of NMDA receptors.  These receptors play important roles in learning and memory, brain development, and neuropsychiatric disease.  Dr. Ehlers will identify new regulatory molecules associated with NMDA receptors, determine the effect of phosphorylation (addition of a phosphate molecule) on these receptors, and determine which domains of the NMDA receptor localize it to synapses (the spaces between adjacent neurons).  These studies may provide a crucial step in understanding the function of the NMDA receptors, which may facilitate the design of rational strategies for the treatment of neurologic and psychiatric disease, such as schizophrenia.

Program Area: SCHIZOPHRENIA/PSYCHOTIC DISORDERS\Schizophrenia

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