We are excited to be starting a new project on SynGAP thanks to support from Leon & friends e.V.
SynGAP is a protein that reduces the activity of Ras-GTPases, which are important in regulating the ERK group of MAP kinases and synaptic connectivity. Mutations in the SynGAP1-gene can cause a non-syndromic intellectual disability (NSID) disorder that often includes epilepsy. Our project aims to make use of our recently developed high-throughout physiology pipeline to identify RasGEF proteins, the RasGTPase activators, that counteract the neuronal signalling affected by reduced SynGAP levels. These RasGEFs could potentially be druggable targets relevant for drug discovery approaches to treat SynGAP-associated NSID.