Gabrielle Rudenko, PhD
Professor, Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology
Tel: (409) 772-6292
Fax: (409) 772-9642
E-mail: garudenk@utmb.edu
Campus Location:5.114B Basic Science Bldg
Mail Route: 0647
Lab Web Page
Research
There are an estimated hundred billion neurons in the human brain and
they are connected to each other via physical contact points called
synapses. Synapses enable neurons to communicate with each other. The
hundreds of trillions of synapses in our brain establish neural
circuitries that guide how we think, move and feel. By unraveling how
the many different synaptic proteins interact with each other and form
complex protein networks, we hope to not only gain fundamental insight
into how neurons communicate with each other enabling the brain to
function, but also to discover new potential therapeutic targets.
Our laboratory is particularly fascinated by the complex protein
networks in the synaptic cleft found at chemical synapses, i.e. the 250 space between the 'pre-synaptic' membrane which hosts the exocytosis
machinery for synaptic vesicles and the 'post-synaptic' membrane which
hosts machinery responding to the transmitted chemical signals. We are
studying a number of synaptic adhesion molecules and synaptic organizers
to understand their role in mediating synapse formation, maintenance,
and plasticity. One family of synaptic adhesion molecules that we have
studied extensively is the family of neurexins. Neurexins play a role in
synapse organization and adhesion. Mutations and lesions in neurexins
have recently been implicated in autism spectrum disorder, schizophrenia
and mental retardation. Excitingly, not only neurexins, but also many
of their direct protein partners in the synaptic cleft are implicated in
these diseases as well (Fig. 1). Neurexins and their partners must
touch fundamental biological processes that are involved in the
pathogenesis of these disorders, but it is not clear which processes
these are and the exact role that neurexins and their partners play in
these processes.
Our laboratory is working to understand on a molecular level how
neurexins, their partners, as well as a number of other synaptic
organizers recognize, bind, and arrange different synaptic partners in
the synaptic cleft impacting synaptic function. By understanding the
molecular mechanisms of these molecules, we will be able to not only
further delineate their role at synapses but also understand why these
molecules, when disrupted, contribute to neurological disorders. We use
biochemical and biophysical techniques as well as protein
crystallography. (Fig. 2).