Contact: Jacqueline Rose, assistant professor of WWU’s Psychology Department (360) 650-6421; Jackie.rose@wwu.edu
When a brain cell is stimulated as a result of experience, signals are sent from one neuron onto the next at a junction called a synapse, which causes a series of subcellular processes to occur in the receiving neuron. Several of these processes have been shown to result in enhanced receptivity of the receiving neuron’s synapses to future stimulatory signals. The change that occurs in a neuron as a result of experience is known as plasticity.
One molecule involved in increasing this neuron-to-neuron communication following activity in the brain is calcium/calmodulin dependent kinase II (CaMKII). CaMKII is involved in several physiological processes and neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy and cell death due to stroke and ischemia.
Rose’s research will look into greater detail about the role of CaMKII in causing a neuron’s synapses to stay poised for plasticity.
“The grant is a big step in establishing neuron cell culture-based research at WWU,” Rose said. “The research is expensive, so to have this grant is a great opportunity.”
Rose began her faculty position in WWU’s Behavioral Neuroscience Program and Department of Psychology in 2008. She completed her postdoctoral research in the laboratory of Ann Marie Craig in the
To learn more about Rose’s research, visit her Web page at http://www.wwu.edu/neuroscience/rose.shtml.
For mo re information, contact Rose at (360) 650-6421 or Jackie.rose@wwu.edu.
