Furukawa Lab:  Structural Biology, Biochemistry, and Physiology of Neuronal Signaling

High-order brain functions including learning and memory formation are the results of complex cellular signal transduction events mediated by the assembly of macromolecules in neurons that respond to given environments. Dysfunction of these macromolecular machineries is frequently associated with neurological disorders such as schizophrenia, epilepsy, strike, depression, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease that are challenging and debilitating clinical problems today. The Furukawa lab’s broad biological interests revolve around the cellular paradigms in neuroscience such as neuroplasticity and neurodegeneration, which are mediated by changes in membrane potentials and numbers of protein-protein interactions. Currently, most of the lab’s studies involve neuropharmacology of membrane-embedded or membrane-bound receptors and signaling molecules that interact with them.

Source: http://furukawalab.labsites.cshl.edu/research/