SEMINAR @ SISSA, SBP, F. Persichetti 06/02/07 at 10.00 room D

[Barbara Corzani]

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STATISTICAL AND BIOLOGICAL PHYSICS SEMINAR
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Prof.ssa Francesca Persichetti
(SISSA)

Title:
"Molecular mechanisms in Huntington's disease"

Tue 6 Feb 2007 @ 10.00 a.m.


SISSA - Basement floor - room D

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Abstract:

Huntington's disease (HD) is an inherited neurodegenerative disorder characterized by choreiform movements, psychiatric and cognitive decline, and the graded loss of neurons in the striatum. The mutation that causes disease is an expansion of a CAG repeat in the HD gene that 
extends a segment of glutamine residues in the protein huntingtin. The elongated glutamine tract is likely to confer a novel toxic property to huntingtin, which initiates a disease cascade that culminates in neuronal loss. At present, the mechanisms by which mutant huntingtin triggers the disease are still unknown. My research interest is to describe the initial molecular events aiming for the development of rational therapeutics.