Neurotransmitters and visual cortex plasticity
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Prevalence of variant brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) endophenotype in amblyopia
IRAS ID
106717
Contact name
Arvind Chandna
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Alder Hey Children's Hospital
Research summary
Vision develops in early childhood and contributes to a large proportion of brain activity. This development is controlled by visual experience and neurotransmitters that are highly sensitive during the plasticity period. A deviating eye (strabismus) or focussing error (anisometropia) disrupts the cortical processing and may cause a vision deficiency. This reduced vision is termed amblyopia. Conventional treatment for amblyopia is with spectacles, patching (occlusion) of the dominant eye and if appropriate surgery. However some children have a greater or quicker response to treatment whereas some children show no improvement, despite similar compliance.
The neurotransmitter brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is a protein that promotes the development, survival and functioning of nerve cells. BDNF is an important factor in the recovery of visual brain cells after a period of deprivation during development. Humans have two common forms of the BDNF gene, one that produces a normal level of the protein and another that produces less (BDNF variant). The variant BDNF has been implicated in neuro-cognitive disorders, decreased plasticity in simple motor learning paradigms and in visual cortical plasticity.
The goal of this project is to determine whether these common genetic variations in the human BDNF gene are more common in patients with amblyopia. It is known prevalence of variant BDNF varies with ethnicity and it is expected that 20 to 30% Caucasian Europeans display the variant endophenotype. Given the extensive brain activity related to vision it is hypothesised many more patients with amblyopia will display the variant BDNF protein than the general population.
REC name
North West - Liverpool Central Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/NW/0232
Date of REC Opinion
9 Jul 2014
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion