Simons Foundation-Supported Research: New Map May Lead to Drug Development for Complex Brain Disorders
Just as parents are not the root of all their children’s problems, a single gene mutation can’t be blamed for complex brain disorders like autism, according to a Keck School of Medicine of USC neuroscientist.
To help researchers see the big picture, Marcelo P. Coba created the first map that highlights the brain’s network of protein associations. It’s a first step to developing treatment drugs that operate more like rifles than shotguns.
“The drugs we have now are not working for these brain disorders,” said Coba, senior author of a new study and an assistant professor of psychiatry at the Zilkha Neurogenetic Institute at the Keck School of Medicine.
“Scientists have not developed a new drug target for complex brain diseases in nearly 60 years. The protein map software my colleagues and I created can help researchers create new therapies that hone in on problem pathways.” . .