Professor Perry Bartlett FAA - Neurogenic regulation of cognition

Research directions

The adult brain is now known to be a “plastic” organ. It has the ability to change, form new cells, and integrate these cells into the existing wiring. The brain continues to produce new neurons throughout life; however, the Bartlett laboratory has shown that the rate at which these new nerve cells are produced declines with age and may contribute to age-associated memory loss.

The group has also identified that latent stem cell populations exist within the adult brain, and these can be activated to give rise to new nerve cells. Within the hippocampus there exist subsets of cells that can be activated by different triggers. For example, experiences of learning and memory trigger one population, whereas anti-depressants trigger another. The presence of two, and perhaps more, distinct stem cell populations raises the possibility that the cells to which they give rise may also have different identities and therefore different capacities and functions. Research within the laboratory is focussed on the identification of these different cell populations, their functions, and their activating triggers. By understanding these fundamental processes, eventually, it may be possible to develop therapeutic products that delay, prevent or even reverse cognitive decline known to occur with advancing age. The Bartlett group also conducts research into spinal cord injury (SCI). The current key project involves the development of EphA4-Fc as a therapeutic for SCI.

Current collaborations

• Professor Rongqiao He, QBI-IBP Joint Laboratory of Neuroscience and Cognition, with the Institute of Biophysics, Beijing, China.
  
• Professor Huji Xu,  Joint Sino-Australian Neurogenetics Laboratory with the Second Military Medical University (SMMU), Shanghai, China. UQ collaborators include Matt Brown, Peter Visscher, Bryan Mowry, David Reutens, Robyn Wallace
  
• Dr Vidita Vaidya, Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, India.
  
• Professor Dongyuan Zhao, Fudan University, Shanghai, China. UQ collaborators include Max Lu, Gordon Xu and Helen Cooper.
  
• Professors Trevor Kilpatrick and Seong-Seng Tan, University of Melbourne. UQ collaborator Pankaj Sah.
  
• Professor Andrew Boyd, Queensland Institute of Medical Research. 

Selected publications

Goldshmit Y, Spanevello MD, Tajouri S, Li L, Rogers F, Pearse M, Galea M, Bartlett PF, Boyd AW & Turnley AM. EphA4 blockers promote axonal regeneration and functional recovery following spinal cord injury in mice. PLoS ONE 6: e24636, 2011

Walker TL, Turnbull GW, Mackay EW, Hannan AJ, Bartlett PF. The latent stem cell population is retained in the hippocampus of transgenic Huntington’s Disease mice but not wild-type mice. PLoS ONE 6: e18153, 2011

Beatus P, Jhaveri DJ, Walker TL, Lucas PG, Rietze RL, Cooper HM, Morikawa Y, Bartlett PF. Oncostatin M regulates neural precursor activity in the adult brain. Dev Neurobiol 71:619-633, 2011

Li L, Walker TL, Zhang Y, Mackay EW, Bartlett PF. Endogenous Interferon g directly regulates neural precursors in the non-inflammatory brain. J Neurosci 30:9038-9050, 2010

Jhaveri DJ, Mackay EW, Hamlin AS, Marathe SV, Nandam LS, Vaidya V, Bartlett PF. Norepinephrine directly activates adult hippocampal precursors via β3 adrenergic receptors. J Neurosci 30:2795-2806, 2010

Walker TL, White A, Black DM, Wallace RH, Sah P, Bartlett PF. Latent stem and progenitor cells in the hippocampus are activated by neural excitation. J Neurosci 28:5240-7, 2008 (front cover)

Coulson EJ, May LM, Osborne S, Reid K, Underwood CK, Meunier FA, Bartlett PF, Sah P. P75 neurotrophin receptor mediates neuronal cell death by activating GIRK channels through phosphatidylinositol 4, 5-bisphosphate. J Neurosci 28:315-324, 2008

Young KM, Merson TD, Sotthibundhu A, Coulson EJ, Bartlett PF. P75 neurotrophin receptor expression defines a population of BDNF-responsive neurogenic precursor cells. J Neurosci 27:5146-5155, 2007 

Walker TL, Yasuda T, Adams DJ, Bartlett PF. The doublecortin-expressing population in the developing and adult brain contains multipotential precursors in addition to neuronal-lineage cells. J Neurosci 27:3734-3742, 2007

Merson TD, Rietze RL, Bartlett PF, Thomas T, Voss AK. The transcriptional co-activator Querkopf controls adult neurogenesis. J Neurosci 26:11359-11370, 2006

Bull ND, Bartlett PF. The adult mouse hippocampal progenitor is neurogenic but not a stem cell. J Neurosci 25:10815-10821, 2005 (front cover)

Goldshmit Y, Galea MP, Wise G, Bartlett PF, Turnley AM. Axonal regeneration and lack of astrocytic gliosis in EphA4-deficient mice. J Neurosci 24:10064-10073, 2004

Forger NG, Prevette D, de Lapeyriere O, de Bovis B, Wang S, Bartlett P, Oppenheim RW. Cardiotrophin-like cytokine/cytokine-like factor 1 is an essential trophic factor for lumbar and facial motoneurons in vivo. J Neurosci. 23:8854-8858, 2003

Turnley AM, Faux CH, Rietze RL, Coonan JR, Bartlett PF. Suppressor of cytokine signaling 2 regulates neuronal differentiation by inhibiting growth hormone signaling. Nature Neuroscience 5:1155-1162, 2002

Butzkueven H, Zhang J-G, Soilu-Hänninen M, Hochrein H, Chionh F, Shipham KA, Emery B, Turnley AM, Petratos S, Ernst M, Bartlett PF, Kilpatrick TJ. LIF receptor signaling limits immune-mediated demyelination by enhancing oligodendrocyte survival. Nature Med 8:613-619, 2002

Rietze RL, Valcanis H, Brooker GF, Thomas T, Voss AK, Bartlett PF. Purification of a pluripotent neural stem cell from the adult mouse brain. Nature 412:736-739, 2001 (front cover)

Faux CH, Turnley AM, Epa R, Cappai R, Bartlett PF. Interactions between fibroblast growth factors and Notch regulate neuronal differentiation. J Neurosci 21:5587-5596, 2001

Coonan JR, Greferath U, Messenger J, Hartley L, Murphy M, Boyd AW, Dottori M, Galea MP, Bartlett PF. The development and reorganization of corticospinal projections in EphA4 deficient mice. J Comp Neurol 436:248-262, 2001

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