UQ discovers fear protein

Researchers at the University of Queensland's Brain Research Institute have identified a protein expressed in the amygdala, a region of the brain that mediates the formation of fearful memories, that could be a target for new drugs to treat anxiety, panic attacks, phobias and some mental disorders.

Dr Louise Faber and Prof Pankaj Sah have been investigating memory formation, focusing on the mechanisms involved in the formation of memories of traumatic events, leading to persistent fear, anxiety and panic attacks.

Sah gave the example of someone sitting in a train listening to a piece of music just before the train crashes -- the person subsequently endures fearful memories of the crash whenever they hear the music again.

The emotions are mediated in the amygdala, a small almond shaped region deep in the brain, and the new protein identified by Sah's team mediates the link between the memory of the event and feelings of fear or anxiety.

Faber said fearful memories that underlie disorders such as post-traumatic stress disorder and anxiety are thought to be mediated by long-term changes in the strength of connections between cells in the amygdala. Drugs designed to block the protein could inhibit the formation of such memories, and prevent the onset of post-traumatic stress disorder or mental illnesses.

The protein is a potassium channel that normally inhibits the release of the excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate, which has a key role in strengthening the synaptic connections between neurons, to create durable neural networks in which memories are stored. Blocking the protein greatly enhanced the strength of synaptic connections between neurons.

The BRI researchers recently published their discovery in Nature Neuroscience.