How are memories stored in the brain? We know much about the brain regions involved in memory storage but we know little or nothing about how individual memories are represented and stored within those brain areas. The purpose of this project is to label and manipulate the specific subsets of brain cells that store individual memories. We will label memory-bearing cells in multiple brain regions and then ask how the connections between those cells encode learned information in the brain.
Problems in learning, memory and other complex mental processes are common to many brain disorders. This project will study the impact of mutations on a family of genes reported in autism and schizophrenia, on complex cognitive behaviours using novel behavioural technologies. This will not only shed fundamental insights into the specific mental processes regulated by these genes and their role in disease, but importantly provide novel targets for the development of therapies.
Neural Correlates Of Fear Conditioning And Extinction
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$901,899.00
Summary
The amygdala is a part of the brain that processes emotional information. Disorders of amygdala function lead to a host of anxiety-related disorders such as phobias and post-traumatic stress disorder. In this grant we will study how the amygdala processes sensory information from the environment and forms memories of salient events. These findings will tell us how memories are formed, stored and retrieved. In the long term it will provide targets for the development of new anxiolytic agents
Cognitive changes after surgery occur in the elderly, yet the cause remains unknown. We plan to study cognition in patients having hip surgery in which general and spinal anaesthesia are used together. This allows us to sample spinal fluid which will be analysed for substances which identify a predisposition to Alzheimer’s disease. By comparing the results to a group of subjects who have not undergone surgery, we hope to identify if anaesthesia and surgery exacerbate this predisposition.
Preventing Academic Difficulties In Preterm Children: An Adaptive Working Memory Training Intervention.
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$711,566.00
Summary
Preterm children exhibit high rates of learning disability which has considerable social and economic consequences. It is proposed that these learning difficulties are related to reduced working memory capacity. This randomised controlled trial will investigate the ability of an established working memory training program to improve academic functioning and prevent learning disability in children born extremely preterm. Neuroimaging will be performed to study functional neuroplasticity associate ....Preterm children exhibit high rates of learning disability which has considerable social and economic consequences. It is proposed that these learning difficulties are related to reduced working memory capacity. This randomised controlled trial will investigate the ability of an established working memory training program to improve academic functioning and prevent learning disability in children born extremely preterm. Neuroimaging will be performed to study functional neuroplasticity associated with improved working memory capacity.Read moreRead less
How Language Develops, What Goes Wrong, And Why It Matters: Following The Early Language In Victoria Study To Age 13
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$857,242.00
Summary
One in five children start school with low language. Little is known about the long term effects on developmental, educational attainment and other outcomes later in life. In this landmark study we will track the children's language, literacy and wellbeing from ages 8 to 12 years. We will capture the children's ability as they finish their primary school education and prior to the crucial transfer to high school.
Preventing Early Academic Problems By Improving Working Memory: Translational Randomised Trial
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$831,085.00
Summary
Learning difficulties are common and can cause school failure and poor self-esteem. They are associated with specific problems with temporarily remembering and using information (‘working memory’). Research suggests that improving working memory might improve academic achievement. We will study this intervention in a large group of primary school children who have poor working memory. If successful, the intervention will provide a way to improve the learning skills of these high-risk children.
The Role Of Metals In Healthy Brain Aging: Identification Of Novel Compounds To Prevent Age-related Cognitive Decline
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$789,733.00
Summary
This grant will explore the basic mechanisms that underlie normal learning and memory. Specifically, we are focussing on how the modulation of metal levels may occur with age, and how this may cause or at least contribute to age-related cognitive impairment. We are also examining a novel therapeutic compound for the treatment of cognitive dysfunction. This work will have implications for both normal and pathological ageing.
The Effects Of The Western Diet On Cognition In Rats
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$689,326.00
Summary
An unhealthy diet can affect how we think. This project will identify mechanisms by which a western diet impairs cognition, and test ways of intervening to reduce the impact of diet on the brain. We will examine changes in inflammation, and markers of nerve growth in a critical brain region, the hippocampus, in response to different periods of diet. We will also test if the diet and our interventions affect the gut biota.
Regulating Microglia To Combat Hippocampal-dependent Cognitive Decline In Ageing
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$493,768.00
Summary
Age-related cognitive decline, a hallmark of dementia, coincides with reduced activity of neural precursor cells and reduced rate of neuron production in the hippocampus – a key brain structure for learning and memory. Importantly, we have demonstrated that exercise can activate neural precursor cells and boost the production of new neurons as well as improve learning and memory. This project will explore the cellular and molecular mechanisms behind these exercise-induced benefits on cognition.