Harnessing Network resources – a Wellcome grant for MURIDAE
The MRC National Mouse Genetics Network (NMGN) is delighted to announce that MURIDAE Cluster Lead, Prof. Anthony Isles, has been awarded a major Wellcome grant, a recognition of the significant impact of his work within the Network in advancing our understanding of psychotic disorders.
The MRC NMGN MURIDAE cluster is part of an international team, led by Professor Esther Walton of the University of Bath, that has been awarded £3.5 million by the Wellcome to investigate how cognitive decline and premature brain ageing contribute to psychotic disorders like schizophrenia. Named “The glue that holds the pieces together: unlocking cognitive health in psychotic disorders,” the project is led by Professor Esther Walton at the University of Bath and was co-designed with adults who have lived experience of psychosis. Read the University of Bath press release here
Cognitive impairment is one of the most disabling aspects of psychotic disorders, often appearing early and worsening over time. By understanding how and when cognitive decline begins, the study hopes to drive early interventions that could slow or prevent deterioration. Bringing together experts from the universities of Cardiff, Oxford, Cambridge, UCL, and the University of Jena in Germany, the goal is to raise awareness, break stigma — especially among young people — and develop better ways to predict, prevent, and treat these issues.
Recent research suggests that the brain changes behind cognitive decline resemble premature ageing, including brain shrinkage. To understand this further, the researchers will use computationally advanced methods to combine large-scale neuroimaging datasets and prospective proteomic samples of people who went on to develop psychosis with brain imaging, behavioural and cellular data from experimental mouse models for schizophrenia, allowing for the best use of all available data from a variety of sources and models, one of the stated aims of the Network.
Professor Anthony Isles, who leads MURIDAE and was a co-applicant, said: “We are thrilled to receive funding for this research. The project makes use of the mouse lines and technologies developed as part of the MURIDAE cluster and aims to understand the cellular causes of premature brain ageing to help identify effective treatments for people living with severe mental illness. This work underlines the importance of the MRC National Mouse Genetic Network and the critical contribution of preclinical models to the development of potential therapeutics.”
Professor Owen Sansom, Director of the MRC NMGN and the CRUK Scotland Institute, said: “I am delighted to see the involvement of the MURIDAE cluster in this exciting work. This project showcases how scientists can integrate data from diverse sources and models to generate results that benefit patients—one of the core objectives of the Network and the data platform we are developing for the community.