Petrine Wellendorph

Petrine Wellendorph says: “γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA) is the brain’s most prominent inhibitory neurotransmitter involved in overall regulation of nerve cell activity. GABA acts via receptors sitting on the surface of cells. Many clinically used drugs act via GABA receptors to produce a depressant effect, such the calming effect seen with the drug Valium. There is, however, a continued need for understanding the GABA system and its minutious regulation to utilize the broad pharmacological potential. This project focuses on proteins involved in control of the basal inhibition level in the brain, so-called tonic inhibition. We wish to delineate the importance of tonic inhibition by investigating both GABA receptors, GABA transporters and metabolic enzymes important for GABA homeostasis.  This will be achieved by using designed compounds and various mouse models. Altogether, the project will advance our understanding of the moleular underpinnings of the GABA system in the brain and identify new therapeutic angles to treat neurological disease.”