Mecp2 function in the Hippocampus.

POZZO-MILLER L, CHAPLEAU C, CALFA G, LARIMORE J, ALBERTSON A, KUDO S, SCHANEN C, THEIBERT A, HABLITZ JJ, ARMSTRONG D, PERCY A

Chicago

Congreso; 9th Annual Rett Syndrome Symposium, International Rett Syndrome Foundation (IRSF); 2008

IRSF

The structural and functional characterization of the cell-autonomous consequences of human mutant MECP2 expression in postmitotic neurons maintained in postnatal rat brain slices represents a novel cellular model of RTT. Due to the limited information on learning and memory deficits in RTT patients, potential impairments in the hippocampal neurons have been previously overlooked. The reversal of the mutant MECP2 phenotype by manipulation of BDNF signaling will provide experimental basis of a potential target for clinical intervention in a disorder associated with MR. We expect the proposed studies to provide novel insights into the structural and functional consequences of mutant MECP2 in hippocampal neurons in a cellular model of neurodevelopmental disabilities disorders with autistic features, such as RTT.