Dr Teresa du Bois

BSc (Hons), PhD

Position: 

• NHMRC/SRI Research Fellow

Research activity:

Objective: 
To determine how disrupting normal brain development and function can lead to mental disorders such as schizophrenia.
Background: 
The underlying cause/s of schizophrenia are unclear, though it is generally considered to be a neurodevelopmental disorder. The NMDA receptor and neuregulin1 systems play a key role in normal brain development as well as adult brain function and are both highly implicated in schizophrenia pathology. NMDA receptor antagonists including phencyclidine (PCP), produce schizophrenia-like symptoms in healthy adults as well as in rodents. Moreover, researchers have shown a link between the neuregulin1 gene and its receptor ErbB4 and schizophrenia risk. It is unclear how these two systems interact in schizophrenia, or in animal models for the disorder.
Approach and expected outcome: 
Using a both a developmental animal model of schizophrenia induced by perinatal PCP treatment, as well as an adult PCP treatment model for comparison, we will examine how disruption to the NMDA receptor affects the expression of the neuregulin1-ErbB4 systems and related proteins. 

Research Grants:

Internal

• 2010: du Bois T: ‘Examining protein-protein interactions in the perinatal PCP animal model’. Faculty Research Committee Early Career Researcher Award, $3000.
• 2010: Huang X-F, Frank E, Chen J, Deng C, du Bois T et al. “Molecular pathology infrastructure: RT-PCR system and film processor” University of Wollongong, Research Infrastructure Block Grant, $70,000

External

• 2009-2010: du Bois T. ‘The effects of PCP on the NMDA receptor/neuregulin1 signalling complex: implications for schizophrenia’. Schizophrenia Research Institute (SRI) Grant-in-aid, $20,000.

Publications:

Searchable RIS publications from 2000 to date.

Top 5 publications:

• du Bois TM and Huang XF (2007). Early brain development disruption from NMDA receptor hypofunction: relevance to schizophrenia.  Brain Research Reviews 53: 260-270. (IF=6.236)
• du Bois TM, Newell KA, Han M, Deng C and Huang XF (2009). Excitatory and inhibitory neurotransmission is chronically altered following perinatal NMDA receptor blockade. European Neuropsychopharmacology 19: 256-265. (IF=3.661)
• du Bois TM, Deng C, Bell W and Huang XF (2006). Fatty acids differentially affect serotonin receptor and transporter binding in the rat brain. Neuroscience 139: 1397-1403. (IF=3.556)
• du Bois TM, Huang XF and Deng C (2008). Perinatal administration of PCP alters adult behaviour in female Sprague-Dawley rats. Behavioural Brain Research 188: 416-419. (IF=3.171)
• du Bois TM, Newell KA, Han M, Deng C and Huang XF (2009). Perinatal PCP treatment alters the developmental expression of prefrontal and hippocampal muscarinic receptors. Progress in Neuro-Psychopharmacology and Biological Psychiatry 33: 37-40. (IF=2.638)

Email: teresa_dubois@uow.edu.au
Phone: +61(02) 4221 5294
Office: B32.329