{"id":2508,"date":"2014-09-30T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2014-09-30T07:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/vermont.salk.edu\/news-release\/salk-scientists-receive-3-million-for-brain-initiative-grant\/"},"modified":"2023-12-11T14:02:11","modified_gmt":"2023-12-11T22:02:11","slug":"salk-scientists-receive-3-million-for-brain-initiative-grant","status":"publish","type":"disclosure","link":"https:\/\/www.salk.edu\/de\/news-release\/salk-scientists-receive-3-million-for-brain-initiative-grant\/","title":{"rendered":"Salk-Wissenschaftler erhalten $3 Millionen f\u00fcr BRAIN-Initiative"},"content":{"rendered":"

\r\nLA JOLLA\u2014Joseph Ecker<\/a>, a Salk professor and Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, and Margarita Behrens<\/a>, Salk staff scientist, have been named recipients in the 2014 round of grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH)<\/a> through the BRAIN (Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies)<\/a> Initiative for leading-edge work in neuroscience. The grant, announced September 30, provides more than $3 million in funding to the Salk scientists over three years.\r\n<\/p>

\r\nThe BRAIN Initiative, launched last year, is a Presidential effort to support high-priority research that advances basic neuroscience, with the goal of uncovering how the brain works and developing ways to treat, prevent and cure brain disorders such as Alzheimer's disease<\/a>, schizophrenia, autism, epilepsy and traumatic injury. Four federal agencies\u2013the NIH, National Science Foundation (NSF)<\/a>, Food and Drug Administration (FDA)<\/a> und Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)<\/a>\u2013have committed to contributing more than $100 million in the 2014 fiscal year<\/a> to support the initiative.\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\"\"\r\n

\r\nMargarita Behrens and Joseph Ecker<\/p>\r\n \r\n

Klicken Sie hier<\/a> f\u00fcr ein hochaufl\u00f6sendes Bild.<\/p>\r\n \r\n

\r\nBild: Mit freundlicher Genehmigung des Salk Institute for Biological Studies\r\n<\/p><\/div>\r\n\r\n

\r\nThe brain has several cell types, many of which are still not well understood. The new grant will support Ecker and Behrens\u2019 labs in constructing a map of the brain that identifies each cell type and how they are connected. In particular, Ecker and Behrens will examine how brain cell formation is influenced by the epigenome, an array of molecules or chemical tags that dot the DNA and regulate the activity of genes. The epigenome, together with the genome, determine the growth and function of all organs, including the brain.\r\n<\/p>

\r\n\u201cWe are very excited by this additional support from the National Institute of Mental Health to participate in the BRAIN Initiative,\u201d says Ecker, who is also a Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation Investigator and the Salk International Council Chair in Genetics<\/a>. \u201cWe believe our new approach\u2013which utilizes epigenetic differences in brain cell types\u2013will complement existing mapping approaches, ultimately leading to deeper understanding of neurons\u2019 identity and functional differences, as well as providing a possible window into brain development and disease.\u201d\r\n<\/p>\r\n\r\n

\"\"\r\n\r\n

A focus of the initial years of the BRAIN Initiative is the development of next-generation tools for exploring how dynamic patterns of neural activity in the brain control thoughts, feelings and movements.<\/p>\r\n

Klicken Sie hier<\/a> f\u00fcr ein hochaufl\u00f6sendes Bild.<\/p>\r\n

\r\nImage: National Institutes of Health\r\n<\/p><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n

\r\nA process called DNA methylation\u2013whereby carbon and hydrogen atoms are added to one of the four bases in DNA called cytosine (C)\u2013is one major way the epigenome influences the genome. This methylation turns off genes and prevents certain proteins from being produced. \r\n<\/p>

\r\nEcker, who led the team that created the first detailed map of the human epigenome, developed an epigenetic tag mapping method, called MethylC-Seq, that tracks where the DNA building block cytosine has been methylated. Ecker has already applied MethylC-Seq to questions about epigenetics that span many fields. Recently, Ecker and Behrens produced detailed maps of the brain epigenome in humans and mice during their lifespan<\/a>, work that was listed as a \u201ctop ten\u201d research advance in 2013 by the NIMH director, Tom Insel.<\/a> \r\n<\/p>

\r\n\u201cThese maps allowed the discovery that neurons show specific methylation marks that differentiate them not only from non-neuronal cells in the brain, but among themselves,\u201d says Behrens. \u201cThis opens a whole new world in neurobiology, where each brain cell can be identified by a stable molecular marker. This will facilitate the study of how brain connectivity is established and maintained.\u201d\r\n<\/p>

\r\nThe labs will use genome-wide cytosine methylation maps of brain cell populations to probe the physical location of cells displaying unique methylation marks in brain slices and whole brains. This novel approach will result in the creation of an epigenetic map of each cell type that can be connected with existing brain gene expression atlases and connection maps, ultimately serving as a reference comparison with maps for neurological disease states such as schizophrenia or Alzheimer\u2019s disease and revealing more about neurological disease. \r\n<\/p>

\r\n\u00dcber das Salk Institute for Biological Studies:<\/strong>
\r\nThe Salk Institute for Biological Studies is one of the world's preeminent basic research institutions, where internationally renowned faculty probes fundamental life science questions in a unique, collaborative, and creative environment. Focused both on discovery and on mentoring future generations of researchers, Salk scientists make groundbreaking contributions to our understanding of cancer, aging, Alzheimer's, diabetes and infectious diseases by studying neuroscience, genetics, cell and plant biology, and related disciplines.\r\n<\/p>

\r\nFaculty achievements have been recognized with numerous honors, including Nobel Prizes and memberships in the National Academy of Sciences. Founded in 1960 by polio vaccine pioneer Jonas Salk, MD, the Institute is an independent nonprofit organization and architectural landmark.<\/p>","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","faculty":[42],"disease-research":[127,169,124,167,460],"class_list":["post-2508","disclosure","type-disclosure","status-publish","hentry","faculty-joseph-ecker","disease-research-alzheimers-disease","disease-research-autism","disease-research-neuroscience-and-neurological-disorders","disease-research-schizophrenia","disease-research-traumatic-brain-injury"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nSalk scientists receive $3 million for BRAIN Initiative grant - Salk Institute for Biological Studies<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.salk.edu\/de\/news-release\/salk-scientists-receive-3-million-for-brain-initiative-grant\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"de_DE\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Salk scientists receive $3 million for BRAIN Initiative grant - Salk Institute for Biological Studies\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"LA JOLLA\u2014Joseph Ecker, a Salk professor and Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator, and Margarita Behrens, Salk staff scientist, have been named recipients in the 2014 round of grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) through the BRAIN (Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies) Initiative for leading-edge work in neuroscience. 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