UC Davis NeuroTherapeutics Research Institute (NTRI)

Welcome to the UC Davis NeuroTherapeutics Research Institute (NTRI), established in 2007 as one of nine interdisciplinary research consortia funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Roadmap for Medical Research, with additional support provided by the UC Davis School of Medicine. The principal objective of the UC Davis NTRI (pronounced “entry”) is the implementation of highly integrated approaches to develop targeted therapeutics, including molecular interventions, for neurogenetic disorders.

The UC Davis Institute, as the hub of the interdisciplinary research consortium, will bring together clinical and basic scientists from the Erasmus Medical Center (Rotterdam, The Netherlands), University of Washington, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, and Scripps Research Institute. Consortium investigators will focus on the late-onset neurodegenerative disorder, fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome (FXTAS; pronounced “fax-tass”). FXTAS affects carriers of small-to-moderate CGG-repeat expansions (55 to 200 CGG repeats or “premutations”) of the fragile X mental retardation 1 (FMR1 ) gene. Larger expansions (>200 CGG repeats) give rise to fragile X syndrome, the leading heritable form of cognitive impairment and the leading known genetic form of autism.

As one of the most common single-gene disorders leading to late-onset tremor, ataxia, and dementia, many of the features that FXTAS has in common with other late-onset neurodegenerative disorders (e.g., Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases) can be addressed using well-defined cellular and animal models. It is our expectation that the understanding gained through the study of FXTAS will be more broadly applicable to the other neurodegenerative disorders.

Although the emphasis of consortium research is on FXTAS, the broader research effort will include both basic and clinical research on fragile X syndrome as well as the cognitive and behavioral involvement among child and adult carriers.