Volume 27 · Number 3 · Spring 2010
Giving: Understanding Connections
Kimberly McAllister (Karin Higgins/UC Davis)
Fifteen years ago as a neurobiology graduate student, Kimberly McAllister was doubtful that researchers could ever fully understand complex diseases like schizophrenia or autism. Now an associate professor in the departments of neurology, and neurobiology, physiology and behavior, McAllister says that with a strong interdisciplinary focus on neurodevelopment and disease, researchers are starting to develop powerful animal models for psychiatric and neurodevelopmental disorders.
A Chancellor’s Fellow Award in 2008 allowed McAllister to fund a unique experiment looking at how synapses or connections in the brain are altered by experience during development and disease.
“Our goal is to use this new approach to test hypotheses of what we think strengthens and weakens brain connections. Once we figure that out, we can test the role of genes thought to be involved in diseases like schizophrenia or autism,” McAllister says. “This will show us molecular pathways to target with therapies.”
The preliminary data obtained with the help of the award led the way to a five-year National Institutes of Health grant of nearly $2 million. “Having access to unrestricted funds like the Chancellor’s Fellow Award is critically important for starting new, riskier directions in basic research that can be leveraged into much larger grants. This program provides a real synergy between disciplines and people at UC Davis—it’s exciting to be a valued part of this campus community.”