NARSAD Investigator Makes Major Breakthrough in Understanding Brain Function

NARSAD Independent Investigator Louis-Eric Trudeau, Ph.D., and a team of researchers from the University of Montreal and McGill University have discovered a type of “cellular bilingualism” -- a phenomenon that allows a single neuron to use two different methods of communication to exchange information.

“Our work could facilitate the identification of mechanisms that disrupt the function of dopaminergic, serotonergic and cholinergic neurons in diseases such as schizophrenia, Parkinson’s and depression,” Dr. Trudeau said. The researchers found that many neurons in the brain are able to control cerebral activity by simultaneously using two chemical messengers -- dopamine and glutamate.

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