Angelman syndrome research by USF Health neuroscientist Edwin Weeber, PhD, and collaborators, published last year in Nature Neuroscience, was chosen as the Scientific Highlight of the Year by the Federation of European Neuroscience Societies (FENS).

In a study detailed in the March 2007 issue of Nature Neuroscience, Weeber and colleagues essentially cured mice with the mutation that causes Angelman syndrome, a rare genetic disorder characterized by mental retardation, movement and balance problems, and seizures. They reversed all the animals’ neurological deficits by preventing the inhibition of CaMKII, an enzyme critically involved in learning and memory functions at synapses. Their findings may point to new therapeutic targets for the debilitating disorder, which affects approximately one in 15,000 children.

Weeber joined USF as an associate professor of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology last summer. The research was published by Nature Neuroscience while he was a faculty member at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, TN.

Founded in 1998, FENS represents a large number of national European neuroscience societies and several monodisciplinary societies. It is the successor organization of the European Neuroscience Association and the European partner of the American Society for Neuroscience. FENS was founded to advance research and education in neuroscience and to represent neuroscience research in the European Commission, IBRO, and other granting bodies.

Dr. Weeber’s work focuses on how neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric disorders, such as Alzheimer’s disease, schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, affect human cognitive ability. He has received several national awards, including the National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression Young Scientist Award and the American Federation for Aging Research Award.

– Anne DeLotto Baier/USF Health Communications