Arpy Saunders, Ph.D. and Austin Schubert, a graduate student and Ph.D. candidate in the NGP, were awarded a 2 year grant from the CURE SYNGAP1 foundation to support Austin’s research project. The grant title, “Brain-wide Discovery of When, Where, and How: SYNGAP1 Haploinsufficiency Alters Neurodevelopment through Single Cell RNA Profiling,” is based on Austin's recent poster of the same name.
Austin will lead a project to create a comprehensive map of how SYNGAP1 haploinsufficiency alters cortical cell type development in a mouse model, using transcriptional "fingerprinting" to help pinpoint the cellular consequences of SYNGAP1 haploinsufficiency. These insights will guide the design and evaluation of emerging therapies to treat SYNGAP1 Related Intellectual Disability and provide a valuable resource for researchers, clinicians, and families.