Project description
Molecular origins of neurodevelopmental disorders
Neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism spectrum disorder, schizophrenia and intellectual disability affect millions of people worldwide. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood. The protein neurexin1a (NRXN1a) functions at neuronal synapses and has been strongly associated with these conditions. However, its potential involvement during the earliest stages of brain cell development has never been investigated. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the NeurXium project will study NRXN1a function during early neural differentiation using stem cell-derived models and cerebellar organoids. The goal is to advance our understanding of the molecular origins of neurodevelopmental disorders and contribute to the development of more precise diagnostic and therapeutic approaches.
Objective
Neurexin1a (NRXN1a) is involved in the pathology of multiple neurodevelopmental disorders (NDDs), including autism spectrum disorder (ASD), schizophrenia, and intellectual disability. Until now, the mechanism has been mainly attributed to its function at neuronal synapses. Here, I aim to break new ground by uncovering the function of NRXN1a in the early stage of neural differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs), where a short peak of its expression has been identified. Intriguingly, despite the strong associations of NRXN1a with NDDs, such a study is missing.
To elucidate the role of NRXN1a at the early stage of neural differentiation, I will use two different complementary iPSC-derived cellular models of hindbrain neural development from healthy controls, an ASD-diagnosed patient with a biallelic mutation in NRXN1a, and a CRISPR-edited NRXN1a-deficient iPSC line, enabling simultaneous investigation of distinct aspects of the NRXN1a-deficient phenotype. Using this approach, I first aim to decipher the molecular mechanisms of NRXN1a function and its involvement in the regulation of intracellular calcium levels. Next, I aim to model the outcomes of NRXN1a deficiency in a disease-relevant setup using cerebellar organoids.
Together, this project will advance our understanding of the function of NRXN1a in the early hindbrain differentiation. It will help elucidate the structural and functional abnormalities observed in ASD-affected cerebella and enable a more precise interpretation of phenotypes observed in NRXN1a-deficient patients. Since increasing evidence suggests that the clinical manifestations of various NDDs may be underlined by a common molecular mechanism, the results have the potential to be beneficial also for other studies on NDDs.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
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CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- natural sciences biological sciences neurobiology
- natural sciences chemical sciences inorganic chemistry alkaline earth metals
- medical and health sciences medical biotechnology cells technologies stem cells
- medical and health sciences basic medicine pathology
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine psychiatry schizophrenia
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Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
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Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships
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Call for proposal
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(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2025-PF
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22100 Lund
Sweden
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