The National Centre for Biological Sciences (NCBS), Bangalore and the University of Edinburg have teamed up in a bid to further understand the mechanisms underlying various neurobiological and psychiatric disorders.

In this regard, the University of Edinburg and NCBS would exchange faculty and researchers to carry about advanced studies in the area of neurosciences to work of Fragile X Syndrome (FXS) which will help to bring together different problems relating to cognitive disorders.

The two leading science research centres are looking at working closely to comprehend the causes of cognitive and emotional dysfunction. In this regard workshops will begin and considerable interactions have already taken place over the past year both at NCBS and Edinburgh. In fact several points of contact have taken off, professor Sumantra Chatterji, a Neuro scientist at the National Centre for Biological Sciences, Bangalore told Pharmabiz.

A workshop was held earlier this year where University of Edinburg scientists were here at the NCBS campus to understand and discuss the findings in cognitive disorders. In February 2011, another workshop will be held. “This workshop will focus on neuro-developmental disorders such as FXS, which is a leading genetic cause of autism and mental retardation. and Retts Syndrome, a disorder of the grey matter, among other mental disabilities. In addition, the workshop will also focus on Neuroinformatics,” he added.

In fact, Neuroinformatics is an emerging discipline at the interface of neuroscience, computer science, informatics, and imaging. NCBS is a participant in an Erasmus Mundus programme on Neuroinformatics.

FXS or Martin Bell Syndrome is a genetic condition that results in a spectrum of characteristic physical and intellectual limitations, emotional and behavioural features that range from severe to mild in manifestation. It can range from learning disabilities to more severe cognitive or intellectual disabilities, some times referred to as mental retardation.

Professor Chatterji had led a year-long research programme in collaboration with the New York University. The study has helped to identify the synaptic defects in an area of the brain which causes FXS. These studies were carried out in-vitro in animals.

Pharmabiz had reported earlier that the neuroscientists from NCBS and NYU studied neurons and synapses in the amygdala, which is a small, almond-shaped part of the brain. The region is known to mediate emotion influence on memory which is affected in FXS model mice.

“Now we are looking at extending our earlier in vitro studies into in vivo animal models,” stated professor Chatterji.