Search

Notwithstanding the implementation of strategic responses to recover habitual levels of performance and productivity, global data points out that the outbreak and diffusion of COVID-19 have imposed a high cost on research activities. Starting from a national survey investigating the impact of pandemics on Italian research in neuroscience, we here specifically aims at exploring its effects on scientific productivity across junior-to-senior professionals. Data highlighted that, given a generalized decrease of objective markers of scientific productivity (i.e. submitted projects or papers), the extent of such decrease was most notable in junior, mid-level and early senior researchers. Also, subjective measures of impact of the pandemics on professional life and work efficiency revealed a coherent profile, with junior and mid-level research professionals referring the highest perceived impact, while the impact of pandemics at psychological and socio-relational levels was rated almost similarly by researchers with different levels of seniority.

The real-time live fluorescent monitoring of surface AMPA receptors (AMPARs) could open new opportunities for drug discovery and phenotypic screening concerning neuropsychiatric disorders. We have developed FORTIS, a tool based on pH sensitivity capable of detecting subtle changes in surface AMPARs at a neuronal population level. The expression of SEP-GluA1 or pHuji-GluA1 recombinant AMPAR subunits in mammalian neurons cultured in 96-well plates enables surface AMPARs to be monitored with a microplate reader. Thus, FORTIS can register rapid changes in surface AMPARs induced by drugs or genetic modifications without having to rely on conventional electrophysiology or imaging. By combining FORTIS with pharmacological manipulations, basal surface AMPARs, and plasticity-like changes can be monitored. We expect that employing FORTIS to screen for changes in surface AMPARs will accelerate both neuroscience research and drug discovery.

The real-time live fluorescent monitoring of surface AMPA receptors (AMPARs) could open new opportunities for drug discovery and phenotypic screening concerning neuropsychiatric disorders. We have developed FORTIS, a tool based on pH sensitivity capable of detecting subtle changes in surface AMPARs at a neuronal population level. The expression of SEP-GluA1 or pHuji-GluA1 recombinant AMPAR subunits in mammalian neurons cultured in 96-well plates enables surface AMPARs to be monitored with a microplate reader. Thus, FORTIS can register rapid changes in surface AMPARs induced by drugs or genetic modifications without having to rely on conventional electrophysiology or imaging. By combining FORTIS with pharmacological manipulations, basal surface AMPARs, and plasticity-like changes can be monitored. We expect that employing FORTIS to screen for changes in surface AMPARs will accelerate both neuroscience research and drug discovery.

The real-time live fluorescent monitoring of surface AMPA receptors (AMPARs) could open new opportunities for drug discovery and phenotypic screening concerning neuropsychiatric disorders. We have developed FORTIS, a tool based on pH sensitivity capable of detecting subtle changes in surface AMPARs at a neuronal population level. The expression of SEP-GluA1 or pHuji-GluA1 recombinant AMPAR subunits in mammalian neurons cultured in 96-well plates enables surface AMPARs to be monitored with a microplate reader. Thus, FORTIS can register rapid changes in surface AMPARs induced by drugs or genetic modifications without having to rely on conventional electrophysiology or imaging. By combining FORTIS with pharmacological manipulations, basal surface AMPARs, and plasticity-like changes can be monitored. We expect that employing FORTIS to screen for changes in surface AMPARs will accelerate both neuroscience research and drug discovery.

A blink is a rapid bilateral eyelid closure and co-occurring eye movement. The eyes rotate down towards the tip of the nose and back up again. Seemingly, this generally unnoticed often repeated action is not very spectacular. However, if not for the occasional blink we would all be blind. A blink is an interesting phenomenon worth investigating. Through its role as a protective barrier for the eye and as a distributor of the eye’s tearfi lm, blinking is a necessity for our well-being but is also an important tool for neuroscience research and physicians. It is an extremely useful model to study motor performance, motor control, synaptic plasticity and is an excellent physiological instrument for the assessment of internal networks and nuclei [Nishimura, T. and Mori, K, 1996]. The blink rate, refl ex blink characteristics and learned blinks are the three main parameters that can be studied to this end. The blink rate is the frequency with which spontaneous blinks occur and can give information about the dopaminergic system [Karson 1988] and might even be usable as a measure of fatigue [Stern et al. 1994]. The refl ex blink is a rapid involuntary response evoked by external stimulation of the eye or eyelid. It has a protective function and is for instance used in research and physiological tests that use the blink to provide important information on the integrity of afferent and efferent pathways. However, important gaps remain in the knowledge of pathways underlying blinking, and aberrations in pathways or compensatory mechanisms are not fully understood. The learned blink is acquired during eyeblink or eyelid conditioning in which an involuntary blink-evoking stimulus is repeatedly combined with a neutral stimulus. After training the neutral stimulus can evoke the learned blink.

Our scientific objective is to advance our fundamental understanding of how the brain plans and executes arm movements. Our technical objective is to design and build high- performance neural prostheses. Jointly, these objectives should provide a deeper understanding of the neural control of natural movement, and a better design of neural prostheses to restore movement to the disabled, including the disabled warfighter., The original document contains color images.