We are testing a new system for linking grants to scientists.
The funding information displayed below comes from the
NIH Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools and the
NSF Award Database.
The grant data on this page is limited to grants awarded in the United States and is thus partial. It can nonetheless be used to understand how funding patterns influence mentorship networks and vice-versa, which has deep implications on how research is done.
You can help! If you notice any innacuracies, please
sign in and mark grants as correct or incorrect matches.
Sign in to see low-probability grants and correct any errors in linkage between grants and researchers.
High-probability grants
According to our matching algorithm, Donatella Contini is the likely recipient of the following grants.
Years |
Recipients |
Code |
Title / Keywords |
Matching score |
2019 — 2021 |
Contini, Donatella |
R21Activity Code Description: To encourage the development of new research activities in categorical program areas. (Support generally is restricted in level of support and in time.) |
The Biophysical Roles of Hair Cell and Calyx Afferent Ion Channels in Synaptic Transmission Between Vestibular Receptors and Afferent Nerves in Mammals. @ University of Illinois At Chicago
Project Summary Prior vestibular research has shown that afferent responses from semicircular canals and otolith organs deviate from the coherent mechanical stimulation imparted by the overlying accessory structures. This suggests further signal processing by hair cells (HCs) and primary afferent conductances, and by the HC?afferent synapse. Processing is complicated by the parallel modes of synaptic transmission between HCs and afferents, and the convergence of multiple HCs onto single afferents. Type I HCs are enveloped by an afferent calyx, creating a cup-shaped cleft between the two elements. By contrast, type II HCs synapse onto bouton endings and/or the external face of a calyx, with relatively small areas of cellular apposition. Further complexity is conferred by three classes of HC-to-afferent convergence. In the simplest configuration, HCs converge onto an afferent solely via bouton endings. Increased complexity is found at calyceal endings, either as simple calyces enveloping a single HC or as complex calyces where the afferent encompasses two or more HCs. The highest complexity occurs at dimorphic endings that contact both type I and II HCs via a combination of bouton and inner? and outer?face calyceal synapses. Prior experiments in turtles have shown that for calyceal endings, rapid excitatory synaptic transmission, via glutamatergic AMPA receptors, is modulated by K+, H+, and Ca2+ accumulation. In response to HC depolarization, there are dynamic changes in ion concentration in the cleft. These in turn impact responses in both the type I HCs and their afferents due to changes in the equilibrium potentials and driving forces for conductances facing the cleft. As a result, properties of these calyceal contacts are significantly different from those for HC and afferent conductances bathed in the bulk perilymph. Consequently, prior single-electrode biophysical experiments on either HCs or their afferents in situ, or using isolated cells, have been unable to dissect the contributions of HCs and afferents resulting from reciprocal interactions created by the unique volume of the synaptic cleft coupling the two. I now have preliminary biophysical results on isolated anterior semicircular canal epithelia in the mouse, Mus musculus. These experiments demonstrate that I will be able to extend and refine the development of a mammalian preparation in which I can characterize the ionic environment of the synaptic cleft and the biophysical characteristics of synaptic transmission between HCs and afferents under conditions where the membrane potentials of the HC and its associated afferent are controlled simultaneously. I will focus on two areas: (1) the gating of type I HC conductances exposed to the dynamic environment of the synaptic cleft; and (2) the integration of synaptic inputs from type I HCs on the internal face of the calyx and type II HCs synapsing either on the external face of the calyx, or on bouton endings of dimorphic afferents.
|
1 |