Stress-GABA pathway in schizophrenia

• Grant number: 19/02723-6
• Support Opportunities: Research Grants - Visiting Researcher Grant - International
• Start date: September 16, 2019
• End date: September 25, 2019
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Pharmacology - Neuropsychopharmacology
• Agreement: CONFAP ; Newton Fund, with FAPESP as a partner institution in Brazil ; UK Academies
• Principal Investigator: Felipe Villela Gomes
• Grantee: Felipe Villela Gomes
• Visiting researcher: Gemma Modinos
• Visiting researcher institution: King's College London, England
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto (FMRP). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). Ribeirão Preto , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Given that about 1 in 100 people will develop a psychotic disorder such as schizophrenia over their lifetime, and that stress has long been linked to its etiology and the current treatments for schizophrenia (targeting the dopaminergic system) are ineffective in around a third of patients and have no impact on prevention, the development of a pharmacological agent or behavioral intervention to ameliorate stress responsivity/enhance inhibitory function would represent a significant progression beyond the state of the art both in psychosis research and clinical care. In this context, the 10-day mission of Dr. Modinos in Sao Paulo will be a great opportunity to discuss preliminary cross-species imaging data on corticolimbic GABAergic binding, brainstorm and plan future experiments to further this promising line of research. Strengthening and extending this fruitful collaboration with Dr. Modinos, who has an international reputation in the field of schizophrenia research, will be extremely beneficial to both groups. This will result in the application of a truly translational approach to schizophrenia research by working at the interface of preclinical and clinical science, and has the potential to train and equip a new generation of basic and clinical scientists with the skills to work with each other at the forefront of research into schizophrenia. (AU)