2024 Seed Grant
Ryann Fame, Ph.D.
Stanford University
The brain and spinal cord are filled with and surrounded by a clear fluid — called the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) — that provides buoyancy and contains signaling molecules and ion electrolytes. During brain development, the CSF directly contacts the neural stem cells that generate the brain. Cells then move away from the CSF as they mature. Electrolytes like potassium and chloride in the CSF change as the brain develops, suggesting a unique environment for these early stem cells that generate the brain. Changes in CSF electrolytes have the power to impact proliferation and survival of neural stem cells, generation of mature neurons, and electrical activity of the developing brain. Disruptions in electrical activity during development have emerged as a unifying phenomenon among developmental neurological disorders including autism spectrum disorders (ASD), epilepsy, and schizophrenia which affect over 11.6M people in the US. About 20% of patients remain refractory and more suffer from systemic side effects of treatment. Dr. Fame’s research group uses novel, advanced approaches to understand how these CSF electrolytes nurture the brain during development to support the neural stem cells and to control brain activity. This research will inform CSF biomarkers of disease and, importantly, bring much needed consideration of this understudied brain component to the ways we research and treat neurodevelopmental disorders.
