Yale Bulletin and Calendar

April 25, 2008|Volume 36, Number 27

Amy Arnsten wins national grant for research on the genetic basis of schizophrenia

Amy Arnsten, a professor of neurobiology at the Yale School of Medicine who is studying a genetic basis for schizophrenia, has received the Distinguished Investigator Award from the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression (NARSAD).

The highly competitive, one-year, $100,000 grant award is made to investigators of brain and psychiatric disorders who have established themselves as leaders in their fields.

Arnsten is studying if a loss of function in the DISC1 gene in the prefrontal cortex leads to network collapse, cognitive dysfunction and loss of dendritic spines. Dendritic spines are the protrusions on nerve cells that receive messages during the process of neurotransmission.

Her research could reveal new information about the influence of genetic risk factors on prefrontal cortex function and how these changes might be relevant to the course of schizophrenia, according to Geoff Birkett, president of NARSAD.

“Dr. Arnsten exemplifies the kind of individual we try to single out for the Distinguished Investigator Award: an outstanding scientist, representing the very best in the field, with an important body of work behind her and currently pursuing innovative and promising research,” he said.

NARSAD raises funds to advance research on the causes, treatment and prevention of psychiatric disorders. Since it began giving grants in 1987, the organization has awarded more than $230 million to nearly 2,700 scientists.

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IN MEMORIAM

Dr. Steven Hebert: Discoveries illuminated kidney processes

G.K. Hunter: Was a scholar of Renaissance literature