Dr. Pedro Fernandez-Funez Receives Grant from the National Ataxia Foundation
Ataxia is a degenerative disease of the nervous system. Many symptoms of Ataxia mimic slurred speech, stumbling, falling, and incoordination. These symptoms are caused by damage to the cerebellum, the part of the brain that is responsible for coordinating movement.
With this grant, the Fernandez-Funez Lab will investigate novel mechanisms implicated in the disruption of eye development in flies caused by KCNC3-R423H by performing a blind genetic screen. This screen will uncover the genes and pathways implicated in the congenital KCNC3 perturbations, potentially identifying targets for therapeutic intervention. The proposed studies with congenital KCNC3 mutants can also help understand other channel-related neurological disorders.