Optimizing Calcium Ion Channel Function Exon by Exon and Neuron by Neuron |
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Launch in standalone player | |
Air date: | Monday, December 01, 2008, 12:00:00 PM |
Category: | Neuroscience |
Description: | Dr. Lipscombe studies the regulation of voltage-gated calcium channels in neurons (http://neuroscience.brown.edu/lipscombe.html ). Diane performed her graduate work at University College London with Professors H.P. Rang and D. Colquhoun. She then moved to Dick Tisen’s laboratory for her postdoctoral studies at Yale, subsequently moving with him to Stanford. In 1990 Diane joined the faculty at Brown University department of Neuroscience where she is now Full Professor. Diane’s research focuses on the mechanisms regulating voltage-gated calcium channels. Her work in Dick Tsien’s lab was groundbreaking, defining the mechanism for presynaptic regulation of synaptic transmission by neuromodulators, showing that this is achieved by actions on presynaptic N-type calcium channels. With the cloning of calcium channel subunits, Diane took advantage of molecular approaches to define a series of novel molecular mechanisms regulating calcium channel function, including mRNA stabilization and alternative splicing. Her recent work shows an hitherto unexpected level of regulation of N-type calcium channel function in neurons that is dependent upon alternative splicing of calcium channel mRNA producing a regulation of G protein-dependent inhibition of the channel. The implications for this work are profound showing that cell type specific alternative splicing serves as a molecular switch to control the sensitivity of N-type calcium channels to neuromodulators. Furthermore, it is likely that this is a more general mechanism regulating calcium channel function producing an unexpected degree of diversity in channel regulation.
NIH Neuroscience Seminar Series |
Author: | Diane Lipscombe, Ph.D., Department of Neuroscience, Brown University |
Runtime: | 75 minutes |
Download: | Download
Video How to download a Videocast |
CIT File ID: | 14801 |
CIT Live ID: | 7129 |
Permanent link: | http://videocast.nih.gov/launch.asp?14801 |
Podcast information | ||||||
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Audio Podcasts | Video Podcasts | |||||
Description | Runtime | Description | Runtime | |||
Enhanced Audio Podcast | 1:15:46 | Enhanced Video Podcast | 1:15:46 |