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Title: Role of a1
subunit-containing GABAA receptors in essential tremor: Studies
in a1
subunit knockout mice (Advisor: Dr. A. Leslie Morrow - Sponsor: Dr. Victoria Bautch - Mentor: Dr. Jason Kralic)
Jessica Osterman Tremor disorders are the most common type of movement disorders affecting between 1-2% of the world’s population, yet the mechanisms that mediate tremor behavior remain elusive. At the Thurston Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, we maintain a population of knockout mice, which are animals that are genetically engineered to lack a gene coding for the alpha-1 subunit of the g-aminobutyric acid (GABA) subtype-A receptor in the brain. GABA is the major inhibitory system in the brain, playing a role in both seizure and addiction disorders, and numerous drugs, including alcohol, mediate their effects through the GABA system. These knockout mice, that are deficient for the alpha-1 subunit, exhibit a severe tremor during voluntary movement and upon suspension by the tail, providing us with an ideal genetic model of tremor. This research serves to determine the role that the deletion of the alpha-1 subunit plays in the manifestation of the tremor and to investigate possible drug therapies to reduce the amplitude and severity of the tremor. |
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