“Connecting The Growing Brain”

http://www.connectingthegrowingbrain.com.

Network of paediatric neurologists and basic researchers that aims to understand the developing brain through synaptic communication.

Today we are pleased to announce the official launch of the network “Connecting the growing brain” (CGB). We are a group of pediatric neurologists and basic researchers working together to understand how dysfunctions of synaptic communication during human brain development may impact normal cognition, behavior and motor function in children. We have the long term goal to develop therapies for pediatric neurologic and psychiatric conditions.

We believe there is a pressing need to create collaborative scientific initiatives on pediatric neurological and psychiatric conditions since these disorders are quite prevalent among children, yet very few treatments exist. We believe that the very significant dissociation between basic research and clinical practice in these fields has resulted in a long lasting translational research deficit. This has so far been a major impediment for understanding the developing human brain, ultimately precluding the development of new therapeutical strategies.

Our project is a multi-level integrative network that illustrates the philosophy of “systems biology” and moves from a reductionist to a more holistic approach. It is inspired by the systematic study of inborn errors of metabolism, where illnesses despite their great complexity are made more comprehensible due to their classification in large physiopathological groups. Our approach represents a “paradigm shift”, the opportunity to develop new diagnostic tools, biomarkers and novel therapies.

We are passionate about helping neuropaediatric physicians make the connection between diseases and their underlying molecular and cellular mechanisms. Through scientific articles, news, monographics and other documents, we will establish these connections, An e-learning course about “paediatric synaptic neuroscience” will be also developed.

If you have an interest in the subject, we would like to invite you to check out our website (http://www.connectingthegrowingbrain.com). We will publish paediatric neuroscience news and updates on different research aspects every week. We welcome comments and questions via the website and email.

Thanks for joining us !!

The CGB working group